


Supernova

by Star55



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Movie Fusion, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Anxiety, F/M, M/M, Manipulation, Murder, OT5 Friendship, Original Character Death(s), Slow Build, Slow Burn, Superheroes, Underage Drinking, Violence, X-men Inspired, slight PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-08
Updated: 2014-05-10
Packaged: 2018-01-11 14:48:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 172,426
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1174358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Star55/pseuds/Star55
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's hard being a teenager. It's hard being a teenager and at a new school. It's hard being a teenager, at a new school and also gay. It's hard being a teenager, at a new school, gay and a mutant. It's hard being a teenager, at a new school, gay, a mutant and who has no idea that he's meant to be the world's next super hero. It seems like Louis has a lot of catching up to do.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Largely inspired by the cover of [Teenage Dirtbag](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8xGNpINwGM) from the This is Us movie because the second I saw it, I apparently had the insane (and I mean insane) need to write a very long and detailed superhero AU. This is it. 
> 
> Strangely enough, this took 6 solid weeks worth of research and I now know a lot more about superheroes, powers and their limitations, etc, that I didn't even know that I needed to know and probably weren't required to actually know but this is me and I love to over research everything, even if there are some creative liberties throughout the fic.  
> This is, as well, based on the X-Men Marvel movie universe. I have adapted the universe a little to suit the fic's needs and I have done countless research to make sure that there aren't any glaring errors, but please do forgive me if there are. 
> 
> This is actually, largely my NaNo for 2013. 91k of this story was written in November alone, with a starting 15k written in October and a following 66k in December. It was my goal to have it completed before the year ended and I finished on December 29th quite happily. 
> 
> A massive thanks goes to my gorgeous beta & Brit-picker, Emma, for although she isn't in the 1D fandom at all, she still beta read this monstrosity. Another extremely massive thank you goes to my girl Friday, Rosey, without whom this story would have never seen the light of day. She put up with my incessant text messages, emails and my 14k worth of fic notes and planning before I had even written the first paragraph of the first chapter. If there are any other mistakes, I take full blame for them. It is somewhat hard beta reading a 172k story more than once, believe me. I'm still exhausted.
> 
> Also, very importantly, this story **is completely written** and I will be posting every Sunday morning here on out for the next 14 weeks. (A heads up - each chapter is over 10k long, so if you're up for it, this is going to be a long ride.)
> 
> I feel like I've forgotten something here... Oh well. This is the longest that the start notes will be in future, so, on with the fic!

Chapter One  
 _Louis_  


Huge would not even be able to begin to describe the building in front of Louis. He felt like he was standing outside of Hogwarts Castle. It wouldn’t be that far off the mark seeing how he had wound up in Scotland, of all places. The building – the one that he would be spending the next few years of his life in – was the biggest that Louis had ever seen. He’d seen skyscrapers before but this building was the home to so many people that it still made Louis’ head hurt to comprehend.

It could also be because he had spent the last week in a coma but he wasn’t sure.

If he concentrated hard enough, Louis could hear the sound of children laughing and it made his stomach clench painfully. He had no idea what to expect but this building, this _place_ was going to be his home for the next however many years. 

From the outside, it looked quite homely, despite its size. The garden was lush and expanded much farther than Louis could see. A massive part of him wanted to find out just how far it went, to explore every single nook and cranny, to find out all of its secrets. Louis resolved that at the first chance he got, he would do just that. He would explore everywhere he could. He wanted to lose himself in this mansion. It looked like it would have a lot of secret passages and Louis wondered just how many there were around. 

A part of him expected to see the Whomping Willow but unfortunately, the gardens didn’t seem to have any magical trees – that he could see, of course. There were plenty of trees but magic didn’t exist. Not that Louis had been told, at least. At this point, nothing would surprise him. Especially not after the last few days he’d had. 

“C’mon, Louis, this way.”

Louis blinked and turned back towards the sleek black car he had just exited. “What about my bags?” he asked, gesturing over his shoulder with his thumb to the boot of the car.

“We’ll have someone take them up to your room,” Doctor Amanda Peters replied confidently. Her bright blue eyes locked with his and she smiled softly, as if understanding what Louis was thinking. “No need to worry – they’re in safe hands.”

Louis hesitated briefly but nodded. He glanced at the car’s boot one last time before shaking his head. He wasn’t going to get stressed out over that, it was pointless.

The black wrought iron gate in front of him slid open, groaning only a little on its hinges. It clunked into place and Louis followed Doctor Peters forwards, heading up the winding path to the building. 

Everything about this place looked like something out of a novel, all picturesque and perfect. It was slightly eerie, when Louis thought on it. This was supposed to be a high school but it looked _nothing_ like the ones he had ever attended or driven passed growing up. It looked more like some rich person’s home. Though, Louis had never attended a boarding school in his life. This is what they might look like but his mind didn’t seem to think that was right, either. 

Doctor Peters was a few steps ahead of Louis the entire walk and every few moments, she looked over her shoulder at him, like he would disappear at a moment’s notice. Louis had thought about it, several times, in fact, but then he remembered that he had nowhere to go. So he stayed because it was better than the alternative. Doctor Peters pushed open a huge oak door and stepped inside the mansion. The inside was just as expanse and extravagant as the outside was. Louis was impressed.

Strangely, there wasn’t another human being in sight.

As they walked, Louis tried to take in as much as possible. The floors were polished hardwood and looked immaculately kept. He wasn’t sure how, considering it was a school, but he supposed if someone could afford such a large property, they’d probably be able to afford a decent cleaning staff as well. 

They headed up a set of stairs to Louis’ right and Louis heard the faint sound of music. He wanted to turn and follow the sound but Doctor Peters stopped in front of a door to her left and Louis stopped abruptly. 

“Sorry,” he mumbled.

She shot him a small smile and knocked three times on the door in front of her. There was a soft ‘come in’ before Doctor Peters opened the door. She stepped in first and Louis followed, his gaze immediately taking in his surroundings. The walls were lined with portraits of people that Louis had no idea who they were but they were clearly important to either the occupant of the room or the owner of the building. He thought he recognised someone on one of the far walls but didn’t get much of a chance to look before his name was being spoken.

Louis’ attention snapped back to the man sitting at a large mahogany desk, his hands folded on the desk in front of him, a pleased look on his face.

“You must be Louis.”

“I must,” Louis replied automatically.

The man smiled again, the crinkles of old age appearing around his eyes and mouth. He looked like he had smiled a lot in his time and that was slightly comforting to Louis. Louis could tell that the man was balding slightly, his dark brown hair thinning out on the top of his head. His hair curled slightly behind his ears and he had warm brown eyes that were somehow inviting, despite Louis never having met the man before. He guessed that was a good thing about the man, that he was a welcoming presence. It wouldn’t bode well for anyone meeting someone who was hostile when first coming to this school. 

“Please, take a seat.”

Louis sat down opposite the desk in one of the winged back leather chairs and Doctor Peters took the chair next to him. She folded one of her legs over the top of the other and rested her hands on her knee. Louis shifted awkwardly in his seat, unable to shake the feeling like he had been sent to the principal’s office.

“I’m Andrew Brown, the headmaster here at Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.”

He extended his hand and Louis immediately stood to shake it, noticing the firmness of the headmaster’s grip. He sat back down a moment later and took a few slow breaths, trying to quell the sudden uneasiness that had settled in the pit of his stomach. 

“You can call me Mr Brown, though, Louis.”

Louis nodded and let his gaze wander around the office for a brief moment. He knew it was rude but everything about this entire place was strange and new and Louis couldn’t fight the itch he had to just touch everything and explore.

“Doctor Peters said you’ve been recovering nicely over the last few days,” Mr Brown said.

“His vitals are fine and everything else seems to be in working order,” Doctor Peters said, reaching into her bag to pull out some papers. She placed the manila folder on the desk and slid it across to Mr Brown. 

Mr Brown opened the file and hummed once before closing it over with a snap. “Well, it seems that you had been doing well in school until the accident.”

Reflexively, Louis tensed. “Uh,” he started. “Yeah, I was doing my A Levels.”

Mr Brown nodded. “The curriculum here is a little different to that of any school you’ve been too.”

“So this isn’t just like a boarding school, then?” Louis asked, his brow furrowing. Doctor Peters hadn’t been overly informative. She had sat him down at the hospital and had a long talk with him about things that Louis just didn’t understand before she had him agreeing to come to this… school. 

“We do have basic courses, yes,” Mr Brown started. “We have Maths, Science, English, History and a few other subjects but since the needs of our students are vastly different to the ones in other schools, we’ve adapted our curriculum to fit.

“For instance,” Mr Brown continued. “You’ll notice on your schedule–” he slid a piece of paper across the desk to Louis, his name printed in the top left hand corner, “that your afternoons are reserved for training. This doesn’t just include power training, but it also includes physical education, consisting of hand to hand combat, defence and many others. These are important for _every_ student to attend, so I cannot stress enough that you are not absent from any lessons.”

Louis’ gaze was fixed on the piece of paper in front of him. So it wasn’t all just some weird, elaborate dream, then. What Doctor Peters had been telling him in the hospital was true. 

He was a mutant. 

That apparently had some kind of super powers, if Doctor Peters’ tests were anything to go by. Strangely enough, Louis had no idea what his super powers were supposed to be, even if that’s what they were called. He had no recollection of anything that had happened after the accident to waking up after coming out of his coma. He only knows what Doctor Peters and the other doctors at the hospital had told him – that he had suffered a severe trauma and that his body had shut down to recuperate. No test actually pin-pointed what had actually gone wrong with him. There had been no physical marks of trauma – Louis had checked himself out multiple times since then. 

When Doctor Peters had sat him down to talk after a few days of being tested, she had told him about mutants and that he wasn’t the only one. He hadn’t believed her at first, who in their right mind would? Mutants weren’t real; they were fiction, legend, even. Nothing like that happened in the real world. She had assured him that mutants were real and that he was absolutely one of them. Louis still wasn’t sure exactly what that meant but he guessed that’s why he was at this school, to find out. It was still a lot to wrap his head around. Doctor Peters had been there when Louis had awoken from his coma and she had calmed him down before Louis even had a chance to panic. Her warm, open smile and bright red hair should have shocked him, especially seeing how unfamiliar she was to him but he had been calm from the moment that she had touched his hand. When he thinks back on it, she probably had some kind of ability that let her do that to him – it made sense at least. 

Doctor Peters had taken a few days to tell Louis exactly what had happened and even thinking about it made Louis’ stomach tighten unpleasantly. He now knew that he wasn’t normal, not in the slightest. He was as abnormal as they came. She had told him all about this school for people like him, people like them, and how it would not only help him understand who he was but it would help him control and harness his abilities as well, like it had done for so many other mutants throughout the years. Louis hadn’t had a chance to wonder just _how_ many mutants there were in the world but he figured it must have been a lot for there to be schools across the globe, educating and shaping the young, mouldable minds of mutants. 

“You’ll be sharing a room with another mutant,” Mr Brown said. “He is a couple of years younger than you but we found it’s best to keep all of the class four students together.”

“Class four?” Louis asked, furrowing his brow, confused.

Mr Brown nodded. “Class four mutants,” he said like it explained everything. It didn’t.

“Mutants are given class levels depending on their ability level,” Doctor Peters explained as she turned to face him a little more, obviously having seen Louis’ confused expression. “There are four other class four students at this school, all male, who you’ll be spending your afternoons with in training.”

“We keep the class four students on a separate floor to the other students,” Mr Brown continued. “In the past we’ve had… incidences that have pushed our hand, making it safer for everyone involved if the class four mutants were kept separate.”

Louis didn’t comment on how odd it sounded, he was too wrapped up in the comment that he was apparently a class four mutant. He still wasn’t even sure what his powers – _abilities_ – even were, let alone why he was a class four. 

His head pounded behind his eyes and Louis rubbed at his temples to try and soothe the pressure. 

“I know this is a lot to take in, Mr Tomlinson,” Mr Brown said. “But we need to inform you of everything we can before you interact with the other students.”

Louis nodded. “Alright.” 

He listened as Mr Brown described the school’s usual schedule, from breakfast times, class starting times, when their lunch and dinner breaks were. Interaction with other students was heavily encouraged but using their abilities outside of the classrooms, while not strictly forbidden, was severely discouraged as some students’ abilities were quite aggressive if provoked.

Mr Brown explained the off-campus policy in detail to Louis, informing him that students were allowed to leave the school on the weekends but on weeknights, students were not permitted to leave the school unless there were extenuating circumstances. There was a curfew of ten o’clock every night and midnight for the weekends, unless permission was given to stay out for the Friday or Saturday evenings.

Two hours into their meeting, Louis was brought a sandwich and a class of orange juice. It wasn’t until he had taken a bite that he realised how hungry he was. Mr Brown went over a few more details with Louis, repeating them to make sure that Louis understood before he asked Doctor Peters to give Louis a tour of the mansion.

Louis stepped out of the office, his head feeling like it had been stuffed with cotton wool. To say the conversation had been enlightening would have been a lie. Louis thought he was somehow _less_ informed now than when he had walked in there at the start of the day. He could feel the throbbing behind his eyes again as he walked down the corridor with Doctor Peters at his side. 

Doctor Peters showed Louis around the mansion to the rooms that Louis would be frequenting. The mansion looked like a maze of twists and turns in directions that Louis wasn’t sure if he would be able to follow. He didn’t even know if he _wanted_ to. Doctor Peters didn’t take him downstairs but she said the lower levels contained the medic wing and the training rooms that were used; including one that she said was specific for simulations. Louis wasn’t exactly sure what simulations she meant but he figured he would understand what it was when the time came. The first floor was the common areas that were for use of all of the students in the school. There were several couches, televisions and all kinds of gaming consoles that Louis was eager to try out. All of the classrooms were located on the second and third floors, the bedrooms on the fourth, fifth and sixth floors. Louis’ room was on the sixth floor. He was shown to his bedroom after their tour took them to the sixth floor. The room certainly looked lived in, Louis noticed. There were books stacked neatly in the bookshelf that was against one of the walls. There were two desks. One was completely empty and the other had a very neat and particular order to it, if the organised pens, coloured post-it notes and closed laptop were anything to go by. The rooms were large, which he was thankful for. If he didn’t get along with his room mate, he didn’t want to have to be in suffocatingly close quarters with him.

The beds were big, too, Louis realised as he stepped closer. It could easily fit two people on it with no hesitation. His bags were at the foot of his bed. Just the two. One tattered backpack and one overnight bag. Louis didn’t have a lot of belongings. Certainly not enough to line a bookshelf or to create a nice, neat little desk with. 

“You’ll be provided with school supplies.”

Louis looked over his shoulder at Doctor Peters; he had forgotten that she was still with him. He nodded at her and let his hand run over the wood of the desk. It was nothing like he’d had at home. He squashed that thought before it could fully form and turned back to Doctor Peters.

“How are you feeling, Louis?” she asked, concern obvious in her eyes. 

Louis shrugged. “Overwhelmed,” he replied as honestly as possible. It was all a bit overwhelming, if he thought about it too much. He didn’t want to think about it too much. 

“It’s like that for most of us,” Doctor Peter said. “A lot of the students here are like you – they come from normal families and are the only ones to produce any kind of ability.”

“Like me, yeah,” Louis repeated, swallowing thickly. Somehow, he didn’t think any of them were like him at all. Super powers or not.

“Lunch time is almost over,” Doctor Peters said a few moments later. “Your next class is a training session with your teacher Mr Grimshaw. He’s been with the school for the last five years. He’s quite a good teacher and he understands better than _anyone_ how to train someone to learn how to cope with their abilities. He’s eager to meet you. I’m guessing the other boys are as well.”

“They know I’m here?” Louis asked, unable to help himself as he followed Doctor Peters from his dorm room. 

Doctor Peters nodded. “We had to tell the staff that we were getting a new student and your room mate was informed that his single room was no longer going to be single. It was just easier to tell each of the class four boys that they were getting another class four student joining them.”

Louis nodded but remained silent. They approached the lifts and Doctor Peters reached out and pressed the call button with a finger. Louis sucked his bottom lip into his mouth and chewed on it for a few moments while waiting for the lift to arrive. It didn’t take long, seconds at most. Definitely not like any lift he had ever been in, he noted.

The lift was just as quick going down to the lower levels but it was a smooth ride, rather than a stomach dropping, jolting kind of ride, which Louis was thankful for. The technology in the mansion was certainly not what he was used to. Everything seemed enhanced and somehow _better_ than any technology that he’d ever experienced before.

They came to a stop outside of a non-descript door that had a simple number ‘12’ on the wall next to the door. 

“This is your training room with Mr Grimshaw,” Doctor Peters said. “It’s all in your schedule but I’m sure you can ask one of the other boys for guidance should you get lost. Remember, this is just an introductory lesson. Mr Grimshaw is _more_ than capable of handling a bunch of rowdy teenage boys.”

Louis nodded and tugged on the sleeve of his jumper so it was covering his hands. 

“Alright, Louis,” she said. “Enjoy the rest of your day!”

Doctor Peters turned around and left Louis standing there, in the middle of an empty hallway. He felt his heart begin to thud in his chest. There was no need to be nervous. He had been the new kid in school before, it was exactly the same.

Except this time, he had super powers and apparently everyone else did as well. Never mind the fact that he still didn’t know exactly _what_ his super powers were. Maybe that was what his first lesson was going to be about, finding out what his powers were and then Mr Grimshaw telling him how to use them. Since the accident, Louis hadn’t even had a flicker that he even had super powers but Doctor Peters seemed convinced that he did have them. It was still hard to get his head around.

Louis sighed and tugged on the threadbare ends of his jumper sleeves and stared at the door like it was the end of the world. For all he knew, it literally was.

He reached a hand up to the door handle and twisted it. The door pushed open in a smooth movement and Louis stepped inside. The room was quite bare. There wasn’t anything on the walls and there were only a few desks and chairs at the far end of the room. Louis looked around, confused. It certainly wasn’t like any normal classroom he had seen. Even though he knew it was a training room, he expected something a little more. He wasn’t sure exactly what he expected but it certainly wasn’t what he was seeing. 

The room was empty of any other people as well and Louis awkwardly shuffled from one foot to the other. So not only was he the new kid but he was also the first one in the room. Nothing said awkward like that.

A burst of cold air brushed passed Louis and he looked around, startled. From out of nowhere, a boy, clearly younger than him, appeared in the room. He was blond and had a bag of crisps in his hand that he was eating from even though the lunch hour had just finished, according to what Doctor Peters had said. Louis blinked as the boy smiled at him.

“Hey, I’m Niall.” His Irish accent suited him, Louis thought as the boy dusted off his hand of crisp crumbs before extending it to Louis for him to shake. He gave his name and shook Niall’s hand before letting his own drop to his side.

“Where’d you appear from?” Louis asked, curious.

Niall grinned and turned the packet of crisps out to Louis. “Want one?” he asked.

Louis reached into the bag and pulled out a couple of crisps and stuffed them into his mouth, nervously chewing on them as he waited for Niall to answer his question.

“Well, when two people _really_ love each other–” 

Louis snorted and shook his head. “Strangely enough, I happen to know where babies come from.”

Niall laughed loudly, his head thrown back with it. “I like you,” he said without preamble. “I have super speed.” He said it so carelessly, like it didn’t even matter that he had this ability. He just so readily accepted it and Louis kind of envied him.

“How fast?” Louis asked. 

“Pretty fast,” Niall replied. “During my last test, I almost broke the sound barrier. That was fun, that.”

Louis was impressed. He watched as Niall suddenly disappeared from the space he was in and he glanced around, wondering where he had disappeared to. Niall tapped his shoulder from behind him and grinned again. Louis wondered if he ever _stopped_ smiling. 

“That’s just one of my powers, though,” Niall said. “I am a man of _many_ abilities.”

Niall reached into his pocket and pulled out what looked like a normal, metal marble. The marble hung in the middle of the air when Niall removed his hand and before Louis’ eyes turned morphed into a baseball bat. Louis gaped. He hesitated for a moment but Niall nodded at him and he carefully reached out a hand to touch it. It was real and solid underneath the pads of Louis’ fingers. It definitely wasn’t some kind of mind trick, Louis decided. 

“Give it a swing,” Niall said with a nod at Louis. Louis took the bat out of the air and twisted it in his hands before bringing it up into a batter’s pose. The metal was cold in his grip. It was solid and Louis could have sworn it was the real deal if he hadn’t seen Niall create it right before his very eyes. He swung the bat through the air, keeping a firm grip on it before bringing it back around and tapping the end on the tip of his shoe.

“It feels real,” Louis commented.

“It is real,” Niall replied easily. “I can manipulate the metal, _any_ metal, to do whatever I want it to. I keep the marble on me to focus my powers whenever I’m not in training.”

Louis nodded. He still couldn’t quite grasp the fact that Niall had just created a baseball bat out of a metal marble though. He figured given time, he’d get used it all. He had to get used to it all – he was in a school for the _gifted youngsters_ that were like him. He wasn’t exactly sure if that thought comforted him or not.

Niall floated the bat to himself, straight out of Louis’ grip and Louis watched, fascinated, as it transformed into a two person desk. It didn’t take very long and once the desk was sitting perfectly on the ground, Niall hopped up onto it, swinging his legs underneath him so he was sitting crossed legged on the table top. 

“It’s quite sturdy,” Niall said after a moment. Louis crossed the short distance between them and gingerly sat on the edge. Once he was sure that it wasn’t going to give out underneath him, Louis shifted his bottom onto the table properly. He kept his legs over the edge and swung his feet out of habit. 

Niall seemed nice, Louis thought. He just hoped that the rest of the boys were the same. He wasn’t exactly sure what to expect from these people. He had only been shown a few pamphlets of the school before he had arrived and they weren’t very informative. Louis was completely ignorant to anything in the mutant world and these boys, the entire school, had had a lot longer than him to get used to the idea. He was sure that some of them came from mutant families, at the very least, so they would have grown up knowing what to expect. Louis didn’t have that luxury at all. He was eighteen years old, apparently a late bloomer, and he was already so far behind. 

“So, where are you from?” Niall asked.

Fear gripped Louis’ insides for a split second before he rationalised with himself that he could give a vague enough answer that would satisfy Niall’s curiosity without going into topics that he didn’t want to talk about.

“Uh, Doncaster,” Louis replied. He kept his gaze on his beaten up Vans, still swinging his legs back and forth.

“Never heard of it,” Niall replied jovially. “I wish I had more food.”

“Didn’t you just have lunch?” Louis asked, glancing up at Niall who just shrugged at him and ran his tongue across his top teeth.

“Yeah,” Niall replied. “But I’m always hungry. Side effect of super speed. Gotta keep up me energy.”

Louis nodded. That made sense. Niall probably expelled a lot of energy with his super speed (which was still weird for Louis to think about) and would need to replenish it often. He wished that he had something to give to Niall to keep him satisfied.

“So…” Louis cleared his throat and shifted, tucking one leg up underneath him, letting the other one dangle over the edge of the table still. “What’s the deal with Doctor Peters?”

Niall quirked his head for a moment. “Shit, they didn’t tell you anything, did they?”

Louis shook his head. “No, I mean,” he swallowed and sighed. “She told me some… stuff. But most of it is a bit overwhelming. You know what I mean?”

The nod of Niall’s head was somehow reassuring to Louis. “Yeah, I get you,” he started. “Doctor Peters is the head of the medic wing. She’s been here for as long as I can remember and she has the ability to locate mutants across the U.K. She found pretty much all of us when we came into our abilities. Especially the ones that don’t come from mutant families. People come into their abilities and she’s the one who knows it before anyone else does.”

That made a lot more sense in Louis’ mind. He had been wondering just how Doctor Peters had stumbled across him, especially when he knew nothing of the mutant race. He knew he had a lot to catch up on, he just hadn’t realised _how_ much. His headache from earlier was beginning to pound behind his eyes again. 

“You met Mr Brown then?” Niall asked after a few moments. 

“Yeah, this morning,” Louis said, instantly recalling both the warmth that came from the man and the eerie sense of him knowing _far_ too much about Louis than he was comfortable with. “He gave me a long talk about the school and the lessons here… Which are a bit different from any normal school I’ve been to.”

“He’s a bit boring, isn’t he? Gave me the same lecture when I came. Thought I was going to fall asleep when he was talking.” Niall stretched and leaned back on his hands, keeping his gaze firmly fixed on Louis like he was trying to decipher something. “His brother or something opened the Xavier’s school in New York _years_ back. This school opened about a decade after that one. It’s good to have it, though,” Niall continued. “This way we can learn about our abilities in a safe environment. Imagine being blue skinned and trying to go to a normal school.” Niall shook his head and picked up the string of his hoodie to shove in his mouth, chewing it a few times before he kept talking. “I don’t think I’d handle being another colour. They get right picked on, they do. It must be tough.”

“Yeah, it would be,” Louis agreed. Having abilities was enough for people to ridicule them for. He couldn’t imagine having _blue_ skin on top of that.

“So, what are your powers then?” Niall asked, gently tapping Louis’ shin with the toe of his shoe. 

“I don’t know,” Louis replied with a shrug. “Doctor Peters hasn’t told me what my powers are yet.”

“Nick’ll tell you what they are,” Niall said. “Once he sees a power in action, no matter _what_ it is, he understands how it works and he then can help train us to harness it and call it out whenever we need. He’s a good lad.”

“Who’s Nick?” Louis asked, curious.

“He’s our teacher for this lesson.”

“Oh, Mr Grimshaw?” Louis wondered and Niall nodded. “Why do you call him Nick?” 

“Because he _hates_ being called ‘Mr Grimshaw’ – says it makes him feel old.” Niall laughed again. “He’s loads of fun, you’ll like him.”

Louis hoped so. He definitely needed someone like Mr Grimshaw – _Nick_ – to tell him what his abilities were and how to use them. 

“How old are you?” Niall asked.

“Eighteen,” Louis replied, shifting his position once again to have both of his legs dangling over the side of the table. He kept his attention turned to Niall as he asked, “What about you?”

“Sixteen,” Niall said easily. 

Louis was saved from any further questions when the sound of two voices flitted through the open door on the other side of the room. Two boys, one slightly taller than the other, stepped through, completely focused on each other and the conversation they were having. Louis took in each of their profiles while he could; glad he had the upper hand here, unlike just before when Niall startled him. 

The shorter boy had dark hair and from what Louis could see, pierced ears. He seemed to fold in on himself a little and he spoke in a much quieter volume than the other boy did. He was stylishly dressed, though, which made Louis give him more than a once over. Whoever he was, he clearly enjoyed looking good if the clothes he was wearing were anything to go by. Louis didn’t know much about fashion outside of magazines but this boy looked like he had just walked out of the pages of a catalogue. Louis should have found it weird, considering this was supposed to be a training session of some kind, but the boy pulled the look off well.

The taller of the two boys had caramel coloured brown hair that flopped somewhat over his eyes, not really unlike Louis’ own. Louis had been in desperate need of a haircut _before_ the accident had happened. He was long overdue for one now. Subconsciously, Louis ran a hand through his fringe, pushing it off his forehead a bit. The movement caught the attention of the two boys, who turned in unison to face him. It felt like the entire room had frozen for a moment as they all paused to stare at each other.

“Hi! I’m Liam,” the taller boy said after a few long moments. The boy next to Liam nodded his head once at Louis and announced that his name was Zayn. Liam stepped forwards and outstretched his hand for Louis to shake. Louis gave him a half-smile as he slipped off the desk to meet Liam half way. He slotted his hand easily into Liam’s own, only to pull back quite quickly once their hands had touched.

“You’re hot,” Louis said, half in awe, half a little scared for himself.

Niall snorted from behind Louis and the other boy next to Liam just smirked.

“Oh! I’m sorry,” Liam apologised genuinely. “It’s my abilities. I have Agnikinesis.”

Louis shot him a blank look. “And that in English is…?”

Suddenly Liam’s hand was engulfed in fire and Louis took a step backwards, knocking into the table Niall was still sitting on. “S-someone help him!” he cried. The flames disappeared as quickly as they came and Louis glanced at Liam, feeling a little wary of him.

“I take it you’ve never seen anything like that then?” 

Louis shook his head. “Never,” he replied honestly. 

“I can control, produce and manipulate fire,” Liam explained. “It’s quite handy in winter.”

Niall laughed loudly and Louis chanced a look at him to see the ever present smile on his face. 

“Oh. I’m Louis,” he said when he realised he hadn’t given the boys his name. “I’m kind of new here.”

Liam gave him what Louis guessed was a comforting smile. “It’s quite good here,” he started. “We’re a good bunch of lads, you’ll fit in fine.”

“Yeah, yeah, Payno, I’ve already told him all that,” Niall said, jumping off the desk, that manipulated itself back into the small metal marble it previously was. He slung an arm around Louis’ shoulders and gave him a quick squeeze. “Louis and me are best mates already.”

Louis couldn’t help but grin at that declaration. If making friends at the school was as easy as this, Louis thought he had nothing to worry about. Niall leaned into him a little more and said something that Louis didn’t quite catch but it made Zayn and Liam smile, so he figured it had to have been a good thing.

“What about you?” Louis asked without realising it as he turned his attention completely to Zayn. “What are your abilities?”

Zayn’s gaze flicked from Louis to Liam and back again. “I can control the weather.”

“Really?” Louis asked, gaping. “That’s… _awesome_.”

“It’s alright,” Zayn replied nonchalantly. 

Louis thought he would have been a bit more enthusiastic about his ability but from the look on Zayn’s face, he was completely off the mark. He wasn’t sure what had caused that reaction from Zayn but he figured it really wasn’t his place to ask, he had just met these boys, after all. He wanted to be friends with them, not make enemies within the first half an hour of speaking to them. 

“Louis doesn’t know his powers,” Niall volunteered. “I guess Nick’s in for some fun with this then, hey, lads?”

Liam and Zayn nodded and Louis opened his mouth to say something when there was a commotion at the door. Another boy stumbled through the door like a baby deer on newborn legs and he grinned widely. Louis felt his heart thud in his chest at the grin when it was aimed his way and his skin tingled for a moment. 

“Oops,” the boy said.

“Hi,” Louis replied automatically. 

The boy was… beautiful was the only word Louis could think of to describe him. He had the most ridiculously adorable floppy, curly brown hair that was pushed to the right side of his head as far as it could probably go. Louis briefly wondered if this was what all of the girls at his old school noticed about guys, their hair and their gorgeous eyes. This boy definitely had both. His eyes were captivating, Louis thought.

“Holy _shit_.”

Louis tore his gaze from the other boy and looked at Niall. He wondered what had happened to cause the outburst but didn’t see anything to warrant it but he figured one of the other boys would tell him. 

“What did you _do_ , Harry?” Niall asked. “I liked him!”

“Me? I didn’t do anything!” the other boy, Harry, exclaimed, an edge of panic tinting his voice. A perplex look crossed his face and Louis looked to Liam and Zayn who both had matching looks of sheer confusion on his face.

“What’s going on?” Louis asked.

“Louis?” Liam stepped forwards and waved his hand in front of Louis. “Are you there?”

“Of course I am,” Louis replied. “What are you on about?”

“Louis… Look at your hands,” Liam instructed.

Louis glanced down at his hands and fumbled a few steps backwards when he realised he couldn’t see them at all. He had no hands. Louis felt his panic rising as he stuck out a leg and realised that he had no legs either. It was strange. He could still _feel_ all of his limbs. They were definitely there but somehow they were utterly gone from sight. 

“Louis, where are you? Let me poke you,” Niall said, glancing around the room. 

Louis stepped closer to him and lifted his hand to rest on Niall’s shoulder. Niall jumped at the touch but immediately poked Louis’ chest. 

“Well, you’re definitely still there,” Niall said. “You must have invisibility as one of your abilities!” He sounded a lot more excited than Louis felt. Louis had no idea that he could turn invisible. He also had no idea how to turn _visible_ again and unless he figured it out pretty quickly, he was going to _stay_ invisible for a while. He really didn’t want to do that.

“Can you turn it off?” Liam asked, glancing in Louis’ general direction.

“No,” Louis replied, agitated. “I didn’t even know I _could_ do this. I have no control over these… abilities.”

“Hey, Liam, hey,” Niall said excitedly. “Put your hot hands on him, see if it’ll shake him out of being invisible.”

Both of Liam’s hands started to glow an orangey-red colour and Louis automatically took a step backwards, his hand falling from Niall’s shoulder. He wanted to turn visible again but he certainly didn’t want to be burned in the process.

“I think I–”

Louis was cut off by someone else entering the room. 

“Alright, alright, I’m here, keep your knickers on.”

Louis glanced at the taller man. He had dark hair and a too-broad smile for Louis’ liking. He immediately felt a sense of unease looking at the man but wasn’t able to pinpoint exactly what it was.

“Where’s the new kid, then? Have you scared him off already?” the man asked, looking at the other boys.

“He’s here, Nick,” Niall said. “Somewhere over there.” He waved his hand around, trying to indicate exactly where Louis might be. “He turned invisible when Harry walked in the door. Probably scared the lad with all of that hair.”

“Hey,” Harry protested. “I did not.”

Nick’s gaze travelled across the room before settling on Harry. “So the new kid has invisibility then. Haven’t had one of those in a long time. Kid. Show yourself.”

“I can’t,” Louis replied. “I don’t know how to turn it off.”

Nick hummed for a moment before shrugging. “It’ll wear off eventually.” 

Louis bit his lip and closed his eyes. He could do this. He had no idea how he could but he could do this, he could turn visible again. He cracked an eye open and looked down at his hands but saw no change. He sighed and rubbed at his temples again, his headache growing once again.

“Ah, there you are.”

Louis looked up to see all five males looking at him. His eyes widened and he looked down at his hands. “I’m visible again.”

The panic that had risen in his chest disappeared as Louis looked down at the rest of his body. He had never felt so glad to see himself in his entire existence.

“So, new kid, got a name?”

“Louis,” he replied, his gaze flicking from Nick over to Harry for a brief moment. He noticed that the other boy looked relieved to see Louis visible again and he felt his stomach flutter at it. “Sorry about that. I had no idea I could do that.”

Nick gave him a curious look. “So you don’t know what powers you have _at all_?” he asked.

Louis shook his head. “Nope,” he replied. The glint in Nick’s eye as he stared at him made Louis feel a little uneasy. 

“Well, I can’t help you unless I know what your powers are,” Nick said. “Liam, hit him with a fireball. Low intensity so it doesn’t burn him.”

“ _What_?” Louis exclaimed, glancing at Nick, wondering what he was trying to achieve. 

Nick fixed Louis with a pointed stare. “Look,” he started, crossing his arms over his chest, clearly unimpressed with something that Louis had no idea about. “You’re in a _class four_ mutant category. You clearly have some other kind of ability or abilit _ies_ that would consider you a class four. I’m guessing it isn’t just your invisibility because while that power may grow and develop, it isn’t enough to be a class four power by itself.

“So, you have some kind of combat or defensive abilities or something that you are hiding,” Nick continued. Louis’ gaze flicked to the other boys but they strangely all had blank expressions on their faces. “Which means you’re either going to Hulk out, or maybe eat the fireball, or, hell, even produce one of your own that will overpower whatever Liam sends at you but until he shoots off that fireball and your powers activate, I have no idea what your powers are and therefore how to help you understand them. Okay?”

Louis’ brow narrowed. He didn’t like the tone of Nick’s voice, even if he did make a good point. He just wasn’t sure that this was the right way to go about it.

“Liam,” Nick started and Liam’s attention snapped to him. “Hit him with a fireball. Don’t even worry about the intensity this time.”

“What? Nick that’s–”

Nick cut Liam off with a dismissive hand and the next moment, a burst of flame came hurtling towards Louis before he even knew what was going on. 

Louis threw his arms up in front of his face on reflex and the flame fizzled out with a hiss. Louis’ gaze widened as he looked around him. He had no idea what had happened but he was suddenly cocooned in a light blue coloured shimmering wall of _something_ that surrounded him like a dome. He blinked and reached out a hand to touch it but it just felt like air underneath his fingers. Fascinated, Louis looked to Nick who had a smug look on his face. 

“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Nick smirked. “Now that looks like a classic force field if I’ve ever seen one.”

He crossed the room to Liam and whispered something in Liam’s ear. Liam’s face was expressionless but he nodded once, the only indication that he had been paying attention to what Nick had been saying to him. The look on Nick’s face changed and Louis felt his stomach drop as fireball after fireball came hurtling at him. Each hit the force field with a hiss and Louis looked on in awe. He couldn’t help but feel a little smug that whatever Nick had told Liam to do wasn’t working. His powers were preventing it and Louis felt like he was proving Nick wrong somehow.  
“Good,” Nick said once Liam stopped.

Louis’ force field dropped without him realising it and he smiled over at Niall and Harry who were standing together. They both had matching looks of confused awe on their faces. Louis could definitely understand that. He felt the same. He had no idea that he was capable of doing what he did but it felt good to know that he was able to do _something_. That he did indeed have some kind of powers and wasn’t mistakenly here.

Harry gave him a slow smile from across the room and Louis couldn’t help but return it. He really did have a beautiful smile, Louis noted. He tried not to stare too much but Harry was captivating, he couldn’t help it.

Without even realising what had happened, Liam was standing over Louis, flames pouring from his hands. Louis’ force field erected immediately, covering him like a dome again as he buckled underneath the pressure of the heat and intensity of Liam’s firepower. He felt sweat trickling down the back of his neck as he looked up at Liam. 

Louis collapsed to his knees and coughed hard. He was shaking all over and there was blood dripping out of his nose onto the floor underneath him, splattering in a tiny pool.

“Stop!” Someone cried. 

He didn’t figure out who it was before he slumped to the floor, curling in on himself, his force field wavering at the pressure it was under.

~*~

_Harry_  


“Stop!”

“Leave it, Harry,” Nick said. 

“You’re killing him!” Harry exclaimed. He shoved himself between Liam and Louis, letting Liam’s flames absorb into his body. He took Liam’s hands in his own and the flames stopped immediately. He curled his fingers between Liam’s own and gave him a pointed look. Liam shook his head and guilt flooded his expression. He stepped back and Harry wondered what had gone on for him to react like that. He had never seen Liam go off the way he had just then. 

“Harry, I _need_ to see what Louis’ limits are,” Nick said as he stepped up next to Harry. “It’s all a part of the training, you know that.”

“Not like this,” Harry growled. He turned his back on his teacher and knelt down next to Louis, whose force field had disappeared completely. Harry reached into his pocket and pulled out a clean handkerchief. He reached over and dabbed at the end of Louis’ nose. The material immediately absorbed the blood that had all but been pouring out of Louis’ nose. Harry laid a hand on Louis’ shoulder and helped him sit up. 

The handkerchief was stained red by the time all of the blood was gone. Harry couldn’t help the overwhelming desire he had to make sure Louis was alright. He understood what it was like to be the new kid, lost and concerned about his newfound abilities. 

“Thanks,” Louis said after a few minutes. He was still sitting on the floor, Harry kneeling next to him. Harry squeezed Louis’ shoulder briefly before slipping his arm underneath Louis’ own, helping him stand. Louis swayed on his feet and Harry immediately dropped his other hand to Louis’ waist to hold him still.

“You alright?” Harry asked.

“Of course,” Louis replied. “That was…”

Harry looked up and noticed that the room was empty. They were alone. He hadn’t even heard his friends or Nick leave but he was thankful that they had. He was overwhelmingly concerned about Louis at that moment.

“C’mon,” Harry said. “The kitchen isn’t too far from here, we should grab you an energy drink.”

Louis nodded, his hair flopping in front of his eyes at the movement. Harry kept his arm around Louis probably longer than was strictly necessary but neither of them commented about it. They shuffled down the hall together and stopped outside of the lifts. Harry pushed the call button and they barely waited a few moments before the door opened to a thankfully empty one. 

Harry guided Louis inside and Louis moved to the wall and leaned heavily against it. 

“Are all lessons that fun?” Louis asked, his gaze locked with Harry’s. The lift stopped and they exited, walking down the hall towards the kitchen.

“Not that I’ve ever seen,” Harry replied. He had no idea what had gone on and made a mental note to check with Nick when he saw their teacher alone next. 

“I’ve ruined your handkerchief. Sorry.”

Harry looked watched as Louis threw the bloodied material into the bin of the kitchen and Harry just shrugged. He opened the fridge and pulled out a can of Red Bull to give to Louis. He took one for himself and cracked it open, taking a long sip before setting it on the counter top.

“Did you know that bananas grow upwards instead of hanging down like most fruit?” Harry asked. Louis cocked his head and he looked curiously at Harry. Harry grinned at him and launched into a very long and detailed explanation about everything he knew about bananas. He wasn’t sure if Louis even cared what he was saying or not but in the entire fifteen minute monologue Harry had about bananas, Louis only looked at him with rapt attention. It made Harry’s stomach flutter pleasantly. He wasn’t sure why he had felt the compulsion to talk about bananas, of all things, but he hoped, at the very least, that it had distracted Louis long enough from thinking about their horror of a lesson. 

Harry bit his lip as he watched Louis take another sip of his drink. He wanted to ask how Louis was feeling but he didn’t want to overwhelm him, either. He was new to the school and had just experienced something that was odd, even to Harry. 

“You can stop looking at me like I’m going break,” Louis said, interrupting Harry’s thoughts. “I’m fine.”

Guilt washed over Harry’s face. “Sorry,” he replied. “Do you want me to walk you back to your room?”

It took a moment but Louis nodded and they both stood. Harry put their empty cans in the recycling bin and they left the kitchen together in silence. Harry’s mind raced. He had so many things he wanted to ask Louis but held back. He hoped that the incident with Nick wasn’t going to put a strain on what he hoped to be their newfound friendship. 

“When’s dinner?” Louis asked as they rode the lift up to their floor.

“Uh, not for a few hours,” Harry replied. “Niall can get snacks though, if you’re hungry. He always has food.”

A hint of a smile crossed Louis’ face and Harry considered it a victory. “Maybe after. I think I just want to rest in my room now.”

The lift stopped and Harry fell into step with Louis as they walked down the corridor, passing by Liam and Zayn’s room to their left. 

“Well, this is me,” Louis said as he came to a stop.

Harry glanced up and smiled. “This is me, too.”

Confusion clouded Louis’ expression and Harry reached passed him for the door knob, twisting it to open the door to the room. 

“Looks like we’re room mates,” Harry said, pushing the door open. Louis stepped into the room first and as Harry entered after him, he glanced over at the other side of the room that had been empty for quite some time. When he first came to Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters, he’d had a room mate but for the last six months or more, he hadn’t had a room mate at all. Niall was the same. He had a single room to himself but he didn’t mind it. Harry occasionally got lonely but when that happened, he’d make sure to sleep in Niall’s room or on the floor in Liam and Zayn’s room. For the most part, they only slept in their rooms, preferring to hang out in the common room or one of their own rooms – usually Liam and Zayn’s room as it was cosier, somehow. 

The bed on the other side of the room was made and there was a bag at the foot of it with what Harry presumed was Louis’ belongings. He couldn’t help but wonder what the room would look like with Louis’ stuff filling the spaces that had been empty for so long. It was a silly thing to focus on but the room looked like it was lived in with Louis just standing near his bed – Harry couldn’t wait for him to get settled and for the room to really be lived in. His own belongings were neatly arranged and Harry knew where everything was at all times. It was going to be an adjustment living in close quarters with someone again but Harry had a feeling that he and Louis were going to get on really well.

“Do you want a hand unpacking or anything?” Harry asked after a while.

Louis looked over at him and shook his head. “No. I got it.” He sat down heavily on his bed. “Thanks, though.”

Harry shot him a smile. “Anytime.”

Even from across the room, Harry could tell that Louis was tense. He sucked his bottom lip between his teeth and chewed on it for a moment before getting up off his bed. Louis looked over at him, curiosity written all over his face but it faded away a moment later as he turned back to his belongings.

“I’m gonna… I – I’ll leave you to it. I’m just gonna be in Liam and Zayn’s room if you need me,” Harry eventually got out. Louis nodded at him, his hair flopping in his eyes again as he did. Harry reluctantly headed for the bedroom door. He hesitated before putting his hand on the door knob and twisting it. He stepped out into the hall and closed the door firmly behind him. He stared at the closed door for a few moments before walking the short distance to Liam and Zayn’s room. He pushed the door open without knocking on it and walked inside. 

Three pairs of eyes looked back at him as he entered the room and he offered his friends a small smile. “Hey,” he said, closing the door behind him. He made his way over to Liam’s bed where the other three were seated comfortably. 

“Where’s Louis?” Liam asked, shifting his legs on the bed so that Harry could join them.

Harry sat down heavily, his mind whirring still. “He’s unpacking,” he replied. “Guys…”

“We know,” Zayn said, glancing at Harry pointedly. Harry glanced between his three friends before kicking off his shoes and tucking his feet up underneath him. He played with the elastic of the sock on his right foot before looking up at his friends again.

“That wasn’t a normal lesson.”

“Mate, I’ve never seen Nick act like that ever,” Niall said. “In all of my years here, he has _never_ made us use our powers against each other like that.”

“There has to be a reason though, doesn’t there?” Liam asked. “I mean, I didn’t even think _twice_ about using my powers on Louis and I have the most control out of all of us.”

“It’s okay, Li,” Zayn said softly, his tone reassuring. “There was something definitely wrong in that room.”

Harry bit his lip. Nothing seemed to add up in his mind. None of them knew the full extent of Louis’ powers, or what he was capable of. Normally a mutant had _some_ idea of what their powers were but Louis seemed to have no idea. His invisibility activated without him even thinking about it and while his force field had as well, it didn’t seem to be very strong. Harry knew that would change with practice but none of them could be sure what other powers Louis could possess. Nick was right – Louis was a class four mutant for a _reason_. There had to be something there that was the reason Louis was a class four mutant like the rest of them. The pieces just didn’t seem to fit together properly, though. 

“You don’t think it was Louis, do you?” Harry asked after a while. 

Liam shrugged. “We have to assume, don’t we?” The others all looked to him and Liam brushed his hair off his forehead a little. “We know it wasn’t any of us four and Louis is the only newcomer whose powers are undefined and wild…”

“It doesn’t make sense though,” Niall piped up, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, tugging at a loose thread. “Why would Louis _make_ you use your powers against him?”

“I don’t know,” Liam replied honestly. 

They fell silent and Harry glanced towards the door, wondering if Louis would come to them or if he would stay in their room all afternoon. He didn’t know what it was but he didn’t believe that Louis was capable of making Liam lose control like that. His powers seemed to be defensive rather than offensive, from what they had seen. It didn’t fit that Louis would somehow make Liam use his powers against Louis. Not when he had looked so panicked and much like he was suffocating when Harry had stepped in. 

With a sigh, Harry got up off the bed. “We can’t just let him think that we think he’s crazy or something,” he said. “We’re all class fours for a reason, right? We’re meant to stick together and learn together while we’re in this school.”

“Yeah, I’m with Harry,” Niall agreed, standing up as well, swinging his arm around Harry’s shoulders. “Louis is a good lad. He’s probably scared. I know I was when I came here and I knew what my powers were.”

Both Liam and Zayn nodded. “You’re right,” Liam said. “We were all scared when we came here but we _all_ knew what our powers were. Louis has no idea. We should be there for him.”

They all left the room together and entered Harry and Louis’ room without knocking. Louis was sitting on his bed, knees drawn up to his chest looking completely tiny. Harry wanted to hug him. 

“Alright?” he asked, moving to stand next to Louis bed. Louis looked up at the four of them. Worry crossed his face fleetingly before disappearing altogether and Harry wished that it never had a reason to be there in the first place.

“Yeah,” Louis replied with a slight nod.

“You wanna come play some football?” Niall asked, taking the initiative where it seemed like the rest of them couldn’t. He sat himself down on the bed next to Louis’ feet and glanced at him hopefully. “Harry’s bollocks at it but me and Liam are good. Zayn is better than Harry though. You up?”

Harry let out an indignant squawk at the comment. “I’m not bollocks.”

Liam, Zayn and Niall all laughed. “Yeah you are, mate,” Liam said. 

“I’m not _that_ bad,” Harry said more to Louis than anyone else. “I just have coordination problems.”

Louis smiled a little at that. “Yeah, I’m up for some footy.”

“Good,” Niall said, slapping Louis’ knee playfully as he stood. “You can be on my team. Then, if you’re crap, you can be on Harry’s.”

Another noise of indignation escaped Harry’s mouth. “Hey, that’s not fair.”

“I’ll be on Harry’s team first,” Louis said as he stood as well. “If that’s alright?”

Niall shrugged. “I’ll go get a footy. Meet you guys down at the pitch.”

Niall sped from the room, leaving the door open. 

“He’ll probably get there before us,” Liam said. 

Niall did beat them down to the football pitch and was kicking the ball hard and fast and then chasing after it himself with his super speed. Harry reached the pitch first and ran over to Niall, trying to steal the ball from him. He landed on his arse quicker than he expected to but Niall hovered over him, holding out a hand to help him up, a grin on his face. 

“No powers during the game, Niall,” Liam said. 

“Yeah, of course,” Niall replied, bouncing the football on his knee. Harry grinned when Louis knocked it from him and started bouncing it on his own knee for a few repetitions before kicking it over to Niall again. “Alright, let’s get this started.”

True to form, Harry wasn’t very good. He did his best but he landed on his arse more times than he would have liked to. Louis was brilliant though, Harry noted. He looked like he had played more than his fair share of football games in the past and he scored a few times for their team. Harry found himself stopping to just watch Louis a few times during their game. Louis had skill and when he kicked the ball right between Niall’s open legs, straight passed Zayn (who was the goalie) and into the goal, he smiled brilliantly, causing Harry’s stomach to flip pleasantly. 

After Louis had scored his second goal, Niall all but leapt on his back excitedly, making them both tumble to the ground. Louis let out a squawk and Niall laughed loudly. Harry watched them, amused and made his way over, flopping down on the ground as well, figuring that the game was over.

“You’re good, Louis,” Niall said, rolling off Louis and mussing his hair. Louis batted Niall’s hand away but kept smiling.

“I used to play when I was at school,” Louis replied. “I was a part of my hometown’s team for a few years.”

“You’re definitely on my team next time,” Niall said, scratching at his calf underneath his trousers. Zayn and Liam made their way over and sat down as well.

“That’s a little unfair, Niall,” Harry said, put out. The only way he even had a shot at winning against Niall is if Louis was on his team all of the time.

“Lads, lads,” Louis started, a grin on his face. “There’s enough of The Tommo to go around.”

Niall bumped his shoulder against Louis’ and pulled out some blades of grass to throw at Louis. “I call dibs.”

Louis rolled his eyes but kept smiling, ducking his head. “What other things do you guys do for fun around here?” he asked.

“We have a gym,” Liam said. “And Harry and I do yoga.”

“Yoga?” Louis asked incredulously. 

“Yeah,” Liam replied with a nod. “It keeps us centred. Our instructor, Cal, is away at the moment but we have a group called the Yoga Bears.”

Louis’ face was unreadable for a moment before he burst out laughing. His laugh was so infectious that Harry couldn’t help but grin. “Yoga Bears? Oh, that’s ace.” He clutched his sides and coughed once, obviously trying to keep a straight face.

“Cal liked Yogi Bear a lot as a kid,” Harry explained. “He’s a good teacher.”

Louis smiled at him briefly before Niall prattled on about wanting to start up a football team at the school. They had enough students but none of them seemed to want to play actual games, like Niall wanted to. Louis told Niall that he would be up for it if they ever got enough players.

They stayed out on the pitch for longer than Harry anticipated. Niall complained about being hungry after a long while and they all made their way inside to get dinner. Dinner was always a chaotic affair, filled with delicious smelling food and loud teenagers all chatting as they ate. Niall packed away more than Harry would ever hope to, making him glad that he didn’t have a power like Niall’s super speed that required him to store a lot of energy. His own powers were enough to try and handle. He had a lot more control over his powers since starting at Xavier’s School but there were still plenty of moments when he lost control or had to concentrate extra hard. It’s why he had taken up yoga to keep himself as centred as possible. He had thought it was dorky at first but when Cal had put up a flyer on the common room pin board, Harry decided to give it a try. It had helped a lot and after the first few months, Liam had joined him and a few other students who attended Cal’s weekly classes. Harry practiced by himself as well, finding that it kept him as focused as possible.

“…after eating?”

Harry paused, his fork half way to his mouth when he realised that Liam was talking to him. “Huh?” he asked and then he shoved the forkful of food into his mouth. Liam broke a piece of bread and dipped it into the sauce on his own plate of food.

“I just wanted to know if you wanted to do some yoga tonight with me,” Liam asked. “I think I need it after today.”

Harry nodded, realising what Liam was trying to say without really saying it. “Absolutely,” he replied. 

An hour after dinner, Harry met Liam in one of the work out rooms in the lower floors of the school. He slipped off his shoes and rolled out his mat on the floor before walking over to his three vanilla scented candles. Liam fiddled with the small portable CD player, popping a disc into it. Harry took the candles over to Liam and Liam rolled his eyes before igniting each with the tip of his flaming index finger. Harry inhaled deeply as the scent filled the space between them.

“One day you’re not going to make me light those candles for you,” Liam said playfully as he laid out his own mat on the floor. 

“It’s easier than carrying around a lighter or a box of matches on me,” Harry replied. “You’re a human fireball, Liam. Gotta put you to good use.”

Liam snorted and stretched his arms above his head while Harry set the candles down in various locations around the room. He joined Liam at their mats after pressing play on the CD player. They both took a deep breath and relaxed into their first pose. Yoga was easy, Harry learned. It was mostly repetitive when Cal was there but he didn’t mind it. He liked the routine and the focus that it gave him when he had to use his concentration on not falling over when he had his legs straight up in the air, or knocking into Liam who was only a few feet away from him. It strengthened his muscles in ways that the other boys didn’t think it would. He still couldn’t beat Liam in an arm wrestle but he was getting there. 

“I feel better already,” Liam said after a while of silence. 

Harry cracked open an eye and looked over at Liam, who was balanced on his forearms and their tippy toes like he was, stretching their torsos. “Good,” he replied. “You’ve had that line on your forehead all day.”

Liam promptly fell over and Harry laughed, moving to curl his legs underneath him. Liam fumbled to get himself upright again and he shot Harry a glare.

“Yeah, that line,” Harry teased and closed his eyes again as he manipulated his body into the next move. “You need to relax, Li. Stop worrying and let the scented candles wash over you.”

Harry knew without even looking that Liam was rolling his eyes at him. Liam had protested to the candles at first but Harry had got his own way. They were just vanilla and weren’t overpowering, which Harry liked. Plus, they soothed him as much as yoga did. To the point that the other boys had teased him relentlessly about it when he used them when having a bath as well. It didn’t bother him because they all had weird quirks as well. 

They ended with the child’s pose and Harry felt so loose and calm that he thought he could fall asleep right there and then. He smiled at Liam as he rolled up his mat and noticed that Liam looked a lot more comfortable with himself as well. The tense muscles that were pulled taut across Liam’s shoulders before they had started had relaxed considerably. 

“See, the candles do help,” Harry remarked as he collected them all from across the room, blowing them out with a puff of his breath. Liam just shook his head, an amused look on his face as he switched off the CD player and put the disc back in its case. 

“I need to shower,” Liam said. “Then I think I might just go to bed while I’m feeling this good.”

“You read my mind,” Harry replied as he slipped his feet into his shoes and walked with Liam to the lifts to go back to their floor level. 

The hot water pounded on Harry’s skin rhythmically and soothed away the last of his aches and worry. He could hear Liam a few stalls over, singing lowly to himself. Harry joined in at the next chorus and he could hear the change in Liam’s voice so he was singing clearly and loudly. Harry really did have the best friends. He was lucky. He just hoped that he could include Louis in that or it could get awkward being together so often during the day. Harry washed his hair as he and Liam continued to sing, careful not to get any shampoo in his mouth. He’d done that before and it never ended up well. 

Once Harry had rinsed the conditioner out of his hair, he got out of the shower, one towel wrapped around his middle, the other wrapped around his hair like his mum had taught him when he was a kid. Liam grinned at him when he spotted Harry exiting his shower stall and he just shook his head, amused. Harry shot him a cheeky smile and he changed into the pyjamas he had brought with him. The soft cotton clung to his slightly still damp skin as Harry finished towelling off his hair, making it even shaggier, if possible. He shook a hand through the wet locks and pushed the majority of his fringe off to the right hand side, deciding to let it air dry. 

Harry and Liam left the bathroom together and parted with a ‘good night’ to each other before they entered their own rooms. Harry automatically glanced over to Louis’ bed where he was sitting on top of the covers, reading. 

“Nice hair,” Louis commented and Harry grinned.

“Thanks,” he said. “I grew it myself.”

Louis snorted and shook his head. He put his bookmark in his book, saving his page before getting up off his bed. “I might go shower too.”

“You know where they are, yeah?” Harry asked and Louis nodded at him. 

When Louis left their room, Harry slipped into his bed, pulling the covers up around his chest. He let out a sigh and reached into his top bedside drawer to pull out his own novel. His eyes drooped after the first five pages and without realising it, he fell asleep, half slumped in his bed, novel propped open on his chest and the bedroom light still on.

Harry slightly awoke to a hand on his shoulder and he blinked blearily up at a blurry image of Louis, who was holding his novel in his hands. Harry made a noise and Louis smiled down at him. 

“Shh,” Louis whispered. “Get comfortable, you’ll get a kink in your neck like this.”

Harry made another noise and shuffled further down into his bed. The bedroom was plunged into darkness mere moments later and Harry fell back asleep instantly. 

His dreams were strange, filled with the faces of the students at the school. He started out in a field in the middle of nowhere. It had lush grass and the trees were taller than his eyes could see. He could hear Niall’s happy laughter as he sped passed him. Liam and Zayn were off, wandering near a lake that had appeared and there was a bunch of girls that were sitting on the edge of a pier, their legs dangling in the water. Harry looked over and decided that he wanted to go for a swim. He made his way across the field to the lake and the scenery changed. He was standing at the edge of the ocean, the water lapping at his feet. He could feel the grains of sand between his toes, the sun beating down hard on his naked back. His skin prickled at the sensation and he took a step into the water, letting it cool his skin. 

There was a scream and Harry turned around, face to face with a forest of dense trees and thick air. It smelled like smoke but he couldn’t see any to indicate that it was. He heard a shout and his body moved before he could tell what was happening. He struggled to move through the forest, his feet snagging on raised tree roots or stray branches that had fallen off. The grass was tall and thick and more than once Harry was sure that something brushed his leg as he kept walking.

Another shout made Harry’s heart speed up and he surged forwards, trying to get closer to whoever was crying out. He heard his name being called and Harry broke into a run, dodging through the trees, feeling the leaves slap at his cheeks as he ducked under branches as fast as possible. He heard an unmistakable piercing scream and saw a blazing fire in front of him. Smoke curled around his arms and filled his lungs with its heaviness. Harry was about to step forwards against the smoke when he woke up, sweat on his forehead, his heart pounding in his chest. He blinked in the darkness of the room and let out a sigh of relief. 

A moment later, there was another shout – a clear noise of distress. Harry looked over at the other side of the room but it was too dark to see. He flicked on his bedside lamp and realised that it was Louis who was making the noise. He briefly wondered if it was Louis’ cries that had penetrated his dream as he got out of bed, feet almost soundless against the hardwood floor of their bedroom. He approached Louis’ side of the room but was met with resistance. 

Harry took a step back and raised a hand, reaching out but it was met with the same resistance. Something shimmered before his eyes, a soft blue colour before turning invisible once again and he realised that Louis must have produced a force field in his sleep. He bit his lip and contemplated on how to get passed the barrier. He reached up a fist and knocked on it but it shimmered briefly again and pushed outwards. Harry hastily took a step backwards before it knocked him over. He looked around the room, wondering if there was anything that would penetrate the force field. 

He saw nothing of use in their bedroom. Short of throwing his lamp at it, which Harry was sure wouldn’t do anything to the force field at all.

“Louis,” he tried softly. “Wake up, you’re having a nightmare.” He repeated Louis’ name a few more times, getting louder with each call out, but had no success in waking up his room mate. He called out once last time and sighed when Louis didn’t respond. Louis made another noise of distress and tossed and turned in his bed. Harry bit his lip and glanced around the room again. His gaze landed on his lamp and an idea came to mind. He crossed the room, turning on the overhead lights, which didn’t wake Louis either. 

Harry reached his hand underneath the lamp shade and curled his fingers around the bulb. It was hot in his palm but it quickly cooled as his body absorbed the power. He released the light bulb when it fizzled out in his hand and crossed the room again. He curled his fingers into a fist, took a breath and punched the force field with all of his might, activating his own powers as he did. 

Unexpectedly, Harry was blasted back from the force field. He went sailing through the air and smashed into his bed, his leg catching on the side of it, breaking it in half, before he was blasted straight through the wall that adjoined their room to Zayn and Liam’s room. He landed on his back with a thud and he groaned. 

Liam and Zayn jumped out of bed at the noise, and the intrusion, and looked down at Harry, worry written all over their faces. 

“Harry what–?” Liam started, worriedly. 

“Holy shit,” Zayn said and Harry looked up to see the large hole in the wall. He gingerly stood, letting Liam help him as he hovered near Harry. He leaned on Liam for a moment and took a few deep breaths.

“Louis’ having nightmares,” he said simply. 

Zayn crossed over to the hole in the wall and reached out a hand. Sure enough, Louis’ force field had stretched across the entire expanse of the room, covering the hole in the wall. 

“Shit,” Zayn repeated. “He’s strong.”

“He’s also having nightmares that I can’t shake him out of,” Harry pointed out.

“Maybe if we all yell out, he’ll hear us?” Liam suggested. 

Harry nodded. It was worth a try. Liam counted to three and they all called out Louis’ name as loud as they could. It didn’t work. Louis’ nightmares seemed to be intensifying, if anything. He was groaning and calling out every few moments and Harry felt utterly powerless to do anything.

“What’s all the racket?” Niall asked as he walked into the room. He rubbed at his eyes blearily before pausing, mouth gaped open as he stared at the hole in the wall. “What happened?” 

“Louis…”

Harry cut off Liam by turning to Zayn. “Do you think you could do anything about it?” he asked. “Maybe use your powers to try and penetrate it?”

Zayn looked warily at him. “That’s a powerful force field, Harry. I doubt I’d be able to break it.”

“Try?”

Zayn sighed and nodded. Harry gripped his arm tightly for a moment before letting it go. Zayn stepped backwards and raised a hand. Lightning bolts shot out of his hand, straight for the force field that was still covering the hole in the wall. The bolts rebounded and Harry quickly jumped in front of them, absorbing them into his body before they could hurt anyone else. 

“It didn’t work,” Harry said listlessly. He sighed and rubbed his temples. 

Niall walked over to the hole between their two rooms and gently touched the force field. “That is an awesome power,” he said. 

Louis cried out again, sounding even more distressed than before and Harry bit his lip in worry. They needed to break the force field or wake Louis up so he could stop the nightmare and stop the force field from preventing them getting closer. Harry shook his head and called out Louis’ name again, his hand resting on the force field as he did. He kept calling out, Liam and Zayn joined in again but Niall had disappeared in a burst of speed to somewhere that Harry had no idea. He didn’t care; he just needed to get Louis to wake up.

Niall returned a few moments later with Nick in tow and they all stood at the force field covered hole in the wall. 

“Well,” Nick said. 

Harry laid his hand to rest on the force field again, a hopeless look on his face. Suddenly, the force field disappeared and Harry stumbled into the room. He straightened himself immediately and looked over at Louis who was sitting up in bed, his hair stuck to his sweaty forehead. Louis looked at Harry and then flicked his gaze to the others who had all entered the room before he immediately turned invisible. 

“Louis,” Harry said softly. He hoped that Louis wouldn’t stay invisible for too long this time. He glanced over his shoulder at the others and Liam nodded at him once. 

“C’mon, lads,” Liam said, ushering the others out.

Nick stayed around and surveyed the damage. He let out a low whistle and shook his head. “That’ll have to be repaired,” he said, crossing his arms across his chest. “I suggest you both room with Niall or something tonight. I don’t think your room is going to be habitable for a few days.”

With that, Nick shot Harry a look that he didn’t know how to decipher before sweeping out of the room. Harry glanced over to Louis’ empty bed and bit his lip. 

“Lou?” 

Louis turned visible again. He was still sitting on his bed. He had his knees drawn up to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. “I’m so sorry,” he said softly. “I had no idea…”

“It’s okay,” Harry said and he crossed the room to Louis’ bed. “Do you want to go sleep in Niall’s room?” 

Louis shook his head. “I don’t want that to happen again and hurt anyone. You should go sleep there, though.”

Harry sat down on the end of Louis’ bed. “You were having some pretty intense nightmares there.”

Louis tensed visibly and drew back even more. “Yeah.”

Harry sensed that it wasn’t wise to ask any further questions. “Alright then,” he said, standing. “Since my bed was broken in the blast, do you mind if I sleep on the floor next to you?”

“Sure,” Louis replied. 

Harry crossed the room and pulled his thankfully still whole mattress off the broken bed frame and dragged it across the floor. Louis got out of bed a moment later and helped Harry arrange it, and his bed sheets. Harry settled down onto his mattress and Louis flicked off the overhead light before climbing back into his own bed.

“Alright?” Harry asked in the darkness.

There was a long stretch of silence before the sheets on Louis’ bed rustled. Harry could see Louis’ eyes glinting down at him through the light of their window. “Yeah,” he replied softly. “Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Harry replied. He relaxed against his mattress and eventually Louis moved away from the edge of his bed to lie back down properly. Harry stayed awake for a while, his mind still processing everything that had happened. He had no idea what had happened in Louis’ nightmares but it had to have been pretty intense for him to have a reaction like he did, even subconsciously. Louis’ powers were strong, that much was certain. 

He yawned widely and glanced over at Louis again. Harry couldn’t help but feel concerned for his room mate. He was inexplicably drawn to Louis and had the urge to protect him. He couldn’t get a read on Louis like he could with everyone else. It didn’t stop him from realising that there were some deep seated secrets that Louis was holding close to his chest. Harry figured that Louis would tell him when the time came.

Harry felt his skin prickle slightly and he looked up to see Louis’ force field come out and surround him once again. It stretched so it was covering Harry as well, in that now familiar half-dome shape. It glowed blue for a moment before shimmering and turning invisible to the naked eye. Harry smiled to himself before he closed his eyes and let sleep overcome him.

~*~


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two  
 _Louis_  


By the time Friday arrived the headache that had been steadily building behind Louis’ eyes had encompassed his entire brain. He thought he would have been done with school by now but according to his classes, he was missing a lot of things from his education. He knew at his old school he was likely to fail his A levels and would have to repeat them but the sheer amount of information that had been shoved at him in his first week at Xavier’s School was insurmountable. He didn’t understand how none of the other students were struggling like he was. Then again, most of them had been at Xavier’s School for a lot longer than he had. He knew his education was important but his personal priorities had shifted with the accident. He didn’t see the point in going to school, learning to do something that would just make him unhappy. While he hadn’t been one hundred percent certain what he wanted to do after school, he surely didn’t imagine _this_ for his life.

Everything had changed so quickly and Louis was struggling to adapt. He had these newfound powers – _abilities_ – and he was expected to master them and have complete control over them before he ever left Xavier’s School. He felt like it would take years before he had the level of control that even Liam had. 

His fellow class four mutants ( _friends_ , his mind supplied, they’re friends) all had been at the school for upwards of two years each and Louis was brand new to everything. He didn’t think that he would learn to have the confidence or control that they had. After the incident on his first night, he wasn’t sure it would ever happen. 

Even though his powers had reacted without his knowledge, Louis still felt entirely responsible for everything that had happened. Harry didn’t seem all that fazed by it, claiming that he had received worse injuries before. That hadn’t comforted Louis as much as Harry obviously hoped it would. He was dangerous. He had no idea how to control this power that was inside of him and he was certain that he was going to end up hurting someone because of it. He didn’t understand his powers and even though Nick was meant to be teaching him and guiding him, he hadn’t done a lot of that at all. Louis didn’t know how to take Nick. He was meant to be their teacher but Louis just got a strange vibe off him every time they spent more than ten seconds alone together. It seemed as though Nick couldn’t care less about helping Louis but whenever Louis asked the others if Nick was always like that, they had no idea what he was talking about. Something was amiss there, Louis knew it. He just didn’t know _what_. 

Louis wandered into the training room with Liam shortly after lunch. Zayn had disappeared somewhere half way through their lunch break and Niall and Harry had left earlier, chasing each other through the halls and giggling like little kids. They were all growing on him and he felt a strange sense of attachment to them, even though he had only known them for less than a week. A massive part of Louis didn’t want to get close to them – he didn’t want to risk them ending up like everyone else in his life had been before he had arrived at the school. He tried not to think of that too much, though. He needed to focus his energy and attention on learning all there was to know about his powers so that he could control them properly. 

“That reminds me that I need to do some washing this afternoon,” Louis said to Liam as they walked over to Niall and Harry, who were doing something that involved Harry to dissolve into a fit of giggles. The sound went straight through Louis. It was a wonderful sound, he thought. Harry had a broad, happy smile and whenever it was directed at Louis, he felt it right down to his toes. 

“I can show you how to use the machines, if you want?” Harry offered. He turned his entire body to face Louis, a smile still on his face from whatever Niall had said or done and Louis couldn’t help but nod. 

“Yeah, thanks,” Louis replied. 

Zayn had entered the room while Louis had been busy staring at Harry’s smile and he flushed when he saw Zayn’s slightly raised eyebrow aimed at him. He turned his gaze away, looking for a distraction when Nick walked into the room, looking every bit of the over-confident prick Louis thought he was. 

“Alright, ladies,” Nick said condescendingly. “Today we are going to focus on one aspect of your powers. Niall, I want you to make me the most complex animal you can think of with your little marble. I want it to be able to move like an animal, feel like an animal and if you can work it, make animal noises.”

Niall nodded and excitedly pulled out his metal marble to get started. He was a lot more adept with his powers than any of the others were, as he’d been at the school the longest. When Louis had found out that he had been there since he was thirteen years old, after coming into his powers at twelve, he had been stunned. Louis couldn’t fathom leaving his family at that age to come to a boarding school like this. He didn’t think he would have survived. He had mentioned it to Niall who had just grinned at him and explained that he knew he would end up at the school as his entire family were mutants. 

Louis wondered what it was like to come from a family of mutants. Niall had told stories of his mother’s beautiful wings, how broad and white they were. He recounted tales of when he was younger going flying with his mother and the excitement on Niall’s face as he told the story made Louis a little jealous. Niall hadn’t noticed, thankfully, and had continued on explaining about his family and their abilities. 

“Me dad can walk on water,” Niall had said and Louis gave him an impressed look. 

“That would come in handy in a place like the United Kingdom,” Louis replied. Niall laughed loudly and Louis had thought it was a sound that he could definitely get used to.

“Me older brother, Greg,” Niall continued. “Is an empath. Not as strong as Harry but he’s pretty good.”

Louis had been confused at that. He had no idea what an empath was, or what Harry had to do with it. Niall must have seen his confused expression because he launched into an explanation of what a person with an empathic ability was capable of.

“So they can just sense moods and feelings?” Louis had asked, curious. 

“Sort of,” Niall explained. “A strong empath can control the entire mood of someone. Like calm them down if they’re getting too emotional, whether that’s angry or sad or anything. It’s more than sensing the moods of people, an empath is a sensitive person and they can help other people deal with their emotions when they’d probably just explode otherwise.”

“And you said Harry’s an empath?” Louis asked.

Niall had nodded once before giving Louis a strange look. “He didn’t tell you, did he?”

Louis shook his head. “Nope.”

“Ah, shit, sorry,” Niall had replied, nudging Louis’ leg with his foot from where they had been sprawled on the floor in the common room. “Maybe he didn’t want you to freak out and think he was controlling your emotions. People have done that to Harry before. It was hard on him so it’s probably why he didn’t tell you, especially since he’s your room mate and all.”

After that, Louis had thought about Harry’s empathic abilities and he wondered if there had been a time where Harry had controlled his mood or felt what Louis had been feeling. He hoped that after his nightmare, Harry hadn’t felt anything that he had been feeling – he didn’t want to subject him to that. He thought back to his interactions with Harry since his first night and decided that Harry hadn’t controlled his mood at all because Louis had felt the exact same way and had the exact same mood all week: overwhelmed and slightly out of his depth with a marginally panicked feeling at being somewhere new. If Harry had controlled his mood at all, Louis was sure that he would have felt something different than what he had been feeling all week.

He hadn’t had a chance to bring it up with Harry yet, though. He wasn’t entirely sure how to. He didn’t want to just blurt out ‘ _hey, Niall told me you’re an empath_ ’, because he figured that when Harry was ready to share it with him, he would. So Louis hadn’t brought it up at all. 

“…to see what you can do, yeah?”

Louis snapped out of his thoughts and focused on Nick. He bit his lip. He hadn’t been paying attention at all.

“Sorry, I missed that,” Louis said.

Nick focused a glare at him and Louis felt his hackles rise in response. Every time Nick fixed him with that look, or any look, Louis felt his defences rise straight away. 

“You need to start paying attention, Tomlinson,” Nick started. “Because these skills will help you control your powers and not blast your room mates through the wall again.”

Louis bit back the retort that was on the tip of his tongue and Nick gave an exasperated sigh before repeating what he wanted Louis to do. Louis nodded and started to walk across the room so he could focus on putting a force field around a chair to see how long he could hold it. He didn’t want to question putting a force field around a chair but Louis focused as best as he could and a moment later, a bubble like force field surrounded the chair. It had a soft blue hue to it and Louis grinned to himself, glad that he had produced a force field successfully.

Earlier in the week, Nick had taken him aside and had explained to Louis how to call out his force field. Louis wasn’t very good at it, yet, but according to the others, his subconscious knew how to produce a force field at the very least. Harry had told what had happened during his first night; how he had his force field surrounding him while he slept and it had reacted to trying to be broken. He didn’t really want to admit it, but Louis was a little afraid of his powers. Especially when he found out that his force field had reacted badly and had blasted Harry across the room. He was scared that his powers were going to activate whenever they saw fit, without Louis’ knowledge or control, and hurt someone else. Harry had assured him that he was fine, that he hadn’t been hurt, but Louis was dubious.

He knew that Nick was the key to focusing his abilities and learning control over them but it was hard when all he wanted to do was punch the smug git in the face. Unfortunately for Louis, he couldn’t do that. Nick was a teacher and Louis was pretty sure that Nick could pack a punch, too. He really didn’t want to test that theory. 

Nick had proved to be a little helpful with Louis, though, much to his amazement. He had spent almost the entire lesson with Louis, going through some of the history of people with the ability to turn invisible or create force fields. He had told Louis that it was easiest to envision his force field being a specific colour so that he could see it when he produced it. It had worked for Louis. He could see the blue hue that everyone else had been able to see whenever he produced a force field. He could feel how solid it was underneath his fingers when he touched it and whenever anyone else touched it, he could feel that too. It was like it was an extension of his body. He knew it would take a lot of practice and concentration to control his powers but it was something he was willing to do.

“Harry, darling,” Nick started and Louis’ attention snapped back over to him. Nick was very close to Harry, his hand on Harry’s arm and Louis wanted to shove a force field between them so Nick couldn’t touch Harry. It wasn’t his place, though, he knew that but it didn’t stop him from wanting to do it. “Can you change that dead light bulb above my desk?”

Even his voice made Louis want to punch him. 

Harry glanced up to the ceiling above Nick’s desk and shook his head. “Nick, that ladder isn’t safe. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Nick pouted. Louis knew he was staring but Nick actually _pouted_ at Harry and Louis was certain that flirting with students, especially underage students, was not accepted in the school rules. 

“Fine,” Nick said. He turned to Zayn and asked him to do it and Zayn’s face went blank before he nodded and crossed the room. 

Louis watched, fascinated, as Zayn, almost robotically, set the wooden ladder up before he climbed it. Harry was right, the ladder was unsafe but Zayn kept climbing until he could take out the fluorescent bulb. It wasn’t until Zayn was climbing back up with the replacement bulb tucked under his arm that Louis realised _just_ how unstable the ladder was. 

It all happened quite fast. Zayn leaned back a little too far on the ladder, which was already struggling to even handle his light weight, and the step he was standing on creaked before snapping. Zayn dropped the light bulb, which shattered on the floor quite loudly, startling the other boys and the entire ladder tipped backwards. 

“Look out!” Louis cried, even though it was probably pointless. He had barely taken a step forwards, his arm automatically going out as if to try and catch Zayn, even though they were too far away to touch. A moment later and before Zayn could undoubtedly crash to the floor and hurt himself, a force field appeared around Zayn, catching him in mid-air. Louis looked as surprised as the other boys did but he broke into a smile when he saw that Zayn wasn’t hurt at all.

The ladder had crashed to the floor, making a loud noise, but Louis didn’t really notice it. He crossed the room to where Zayn was still suspended in mid-air. 

“Alright?” Louis asked.

Zayn nodded. “Yeah.” He looked around at the bubble like force field and smiled. “Can you let me down, though?”

“Of course,” Louis replied. “Um, I don’t know _how_ exactly, so you might fall on your arse, okay?”

Louis concentrated and lowered the force field. Zayn acted quickly, swinging his legs down so he landed on his feet rather than his arse. He jolted a little when his feet touched the ground but it was no worse than if he had jumped down off the top of a book case. 

“Thanks,” Zayn said, throwing one arm around Louis in a half hug.

The other boys all patted Louis’ shoulder, showing their gratitude. Out of the corner of his eye, Louis could see an odd expression on Nick’s face. It was quickly replaced when Harry’s curls were in his line of sight instead, a happy smile on his face. He could hear Nick muttering about cleaning up the broken ladder and he left the room presumably to find a dustpan and brush. 

“That was wicked,” Harry said excitedly. “You’re definitely getting the hang of your powers now, Lou.”

Pride filled Louis at Harry’s comment. “Thanks,” he replied. 

A large metal bird swooped down and sat itself on Niall’s shoulder, pulling Louis’ attention away from Harry and Zayn. The metal bird made a noise not unlike a hawk and Louis blinked at the suddenness of its appearance. He automatically took a step closer to Harry, wary of it. 

“What’s that?” he asked.

Niall grinned and reached up a hand to scratch underneath the bird’s chin. It reacted to Niall’s touch, leaning into his hand, trilling happily. “This is Steve.”

Harry snorted next to Louis and reached over to touch the bird as well. It regarded Harry like a real bird would before walking along Niall’s shoulder towards Harry’s outstretched hand. Louis watched, fascinated, as the bird hopped onto Harry’s hand and he had to wonder just _how_ much Niall was controlling it. The bird seemed taken with Harry, though; especially Harry’s curls which it pecked its beak into. Harry laughed at it and gave it a kiss on top of its head. 

The bird hopped onto each of their shoulders, its beak touching all of their heads with affection before it spread its wings, showing off its wide wingspan to fly around the room a few times. Louis was in awe. Niall was truly talented, he couldn’t deny it. Once the bird had circled the room twice, all of them watching with rapt attention, it landed back on Harry’s crooked arm, settling near his elbow. Harry grinned at the bird then at Niall.

“This is brilliant, mate,” he said in awe. “Best thing you’ve done yet.”

Niall beamed at Harry, pride showing clearly on his face. Louis watched as Harry reached up with his free hand to tickle under the metal bird’s neck again. It hopped up his arm and perched on his shoulder, nuzzling its beak into his hair once more. Harry laughed and turned his face to kiss the top of the bird’s head again.

“Alright, alright,” Nick said re-entering the room, a dustpan and brush in his hand. “We all know that’s the only kind of bird you want to kiss, Harry, so how about you help me clean up this mess instead. Good job, Niall.”

The bird jumped off Harry’s shoulder and morphed back into the metal ball that it had started as. Harry crossed the room to help Nick and Louis couldn’t help but replay Nick’s comment about Harry and birds in his mind again. He didn’t want to dwell on it too much – it wasn’t his place to think about what that comment actually meant but it didn’t stop his mind from wandering. 

Harry bent over to help Nick and his trousers stretched across his arse in a way that was positively delectable. Louis tore his gaze away and caught Zayn staring at him with one eyebrow raised. Louis sucked his bottom lip between his teeth and ducked his head, avoiding Zayn’s gaze as well. He crossed the room where Niall and Liam were talking about something and tried to pay attention to their conversation instead.

“You boys can go, if you want,” Nick said. “Harry and I will finish cleaning this up.”

“Alright,” Niall agreed, leaving the room first. Liam and Zayn followed close behind him and Louis shot Harry a glance before leaving as well. 

When he stepped into the lift, Zayn slung his arm around Louis’ shoulders. He gave Louis a strange look before squeezing his arm a little. “Thanks for catching me.”

“Anytime,” Louis replied. “That ladder was really unsafe, though, why’d you do it?”

Zayn shrugged. “Dunno, it seemed like it was a good idea at the time.”

It seemed odd to Louis but he didn’t push it any further. They all exited the lift on their floor and Louis headed to his and Harry’s newly repaired room. It hadn’t taken long for it to be fixed but every time Louis stepped through the door, he felt guilty. The room looked exactly how it had before and if Louis hadn’t known that there had been a hole in the wall, he wouldn’t know where to look for the replacement it was that perfectly fixed. 

The moment he entered his bedroom, Louis remembered that he had to do his washing. He made a face at it before grabbing the washing basket that Harry often used to pile stuff into it. He didn’t have a lot of clothes with him – he didn’t have a lot of anything, when he thought about it. The other boys all had homely touches to their rooms and their belongings; Louis didn’t have that. He hadn’t wanted to go back home after the accident, not when it reminded him of all the things that he no longer had. It was hard enough just leaving to come to Xavier’s School but he had done it. 

Some accountant or another was sorting out Louis’ finances and accounts. It was all very confusing for him but until that got sorted, he had little to no money. He just had what had been in his primary account before arriving at the school. 

The bedroom door opened behind Louis and a moment later, Zayn flopped himself onto Louis’ bed. He fixed Louis with a look and Louis squirmed slightly underneath the intensity of it. 

“What?” he asked.

“You’re coming out with me tomorrow,” Zayn said, pulling Louis’ pillow to his chest so he could pick at the corner of the pillow case.

“…Why?” 

“Because I said so,” Zayn replied. Louis stared at his new friend. “Fine, we’re going shopping. I need to blow off steam and you desperately need some new clothes.”

Louis paused. He agreed with Zayn that he needed some new things. The threadbare jumper he had been wearing all week wasn’t going to hold up much longer. Not to mention the holes in almost all of his t-shirts that he had been hiding underneath his thin jumper. “I’m fine,” he said to Zayn, not meeting his gaze as he continued to put clothes into Harry’s washing basket. 

Zayn leaned forwards and poked Louis’ forearm. “Louis,” he said and Louis couldn’t help but look at him. “Let me do this for you, yeah?”

Louis couldn’t decipher the look on Zayn’s face before Zayn rolled away and patted him on the shoulder. He squeezed Louis’ shoulder once before letting go and leaving the room. Louis was alone for approximately three seconds before Harry bounded into the room, all smiles and bouncing curls.

“I see you’re getting started,” he said. “C’mon, I’ll show you how to use the machines. Some of them can be a bit tricky to use.”

Louis piled the last of his clothes into the basket and grabbed the handles before following Harry out of their room and down to the laundry room. It was like a launderette, Louis thought as he stepped into the room. There were half a dozen washing machines lining one wall and three industrial sized ones next to it. On the opposite wall, there was the same amount of dryers. Harry led Louis to the washing machine closest to the first large industrial sized washing machine.

“This one is my favourite to use,” Harry said, opening the lid of it. Louis set his basket down on top of one of the other machines and stepped closer to Harry. “Did you do your own washing at home?”

Louis shook his head. “Nah, I…” he paused and swallowed thickly. “No, I never.”

“Alright,” Harry said with a nod. He launched into a slowly spoken but detailed explanation of how washing was supposed to be done. From separating whites to putting underwear and socks in separately. Louis was confused and he was certain that his face showed just how confused he was but Harry patiently waited for Louis to get it and helped him along the way. 

It was odd, doing washing with a boy that was a couple of years younger than him. Louis always figured that the first boy he did washing with would be a boyfriend in university or maybe even a room mate at university. He never expected anything like this. He could do worse, Louis decided. Harry was cute and had the patience of a saint if Louis’ obnoxious questions were anything to go by. 

“When did you first learn to do your washing?” Louis asked as they sat down on one of the rows of benches across from the machines. He pulled his feet up onto the bench and brought his knees to his chest so he could rest his chin on them. 

“I was about twelve,” Harry replied. “I liked helping mum out around the house and with Gemma going off to uni, I just wanted to.”

“And your sister isn’t a mutant, is she?” Louis asked. Harry had talked a fair bit about his family with Louis on an evening. Sharing tales of growing up with his sister and how close they were. Louis always felt torn after their talks and after he found out about Harry’s empathic ability, he had to wonder if Harry ever felt Louis’ emotions but didn’t question them out of kindness or something.

Harry nodded, his curls falling in front of his eyes. He pushed them back with practiced ease and smiled, dimple poking into his left cheek. “Yeah, she’s just a regular human,” he said. “Mum didn’t tell me that she was a mutant until I came into my powers when I was fourteen. She can levitate herself. Only a couple of feet off the ground but it’s _wicked_. I think Gem was a bit jealous that I got the mutant gene and she never. She’s at uni, though. She’s quite amazing even without mutant powers.”

Louis gave Harry a small smile. Harry always lit up like a Christmas tree whenever he spoke about his family. Louis knew probably far too much about them already but he didn’t mind. It was worth it just to see Harry’s face break into a happy smile whenever he talked about them. Louis figured Harry missed his family a lot. A feeling Louis understood all too well. 

While Louis’ clothes washed, Harry talked. Normally Louis would hate people just speaking to fill the silence but with Harry it was different. It was better. Every story Harry told him made Louis feel like he was getting closer to Harry. It wasn’t a new thing for him – having feelings for someone, but it was different to have such strong feelings for someone from the instant that he met them. That wasn’t what Louis was about and that certainly wasn’t how he did things. He was friends with the other boys already but none were quite like Harry. Harry who told him facts about bananas on his first day just to try and distract him and make him feel better. Harry who slept next to him that first night, even after Louis’ powers had hurt him. Harry was special and Louis didn’t have a clue as to _why_ he was so special but he just knew that he wanted to protect Harry with every fibre of his being. 

Now that he was a mutant, it may just be actually possible.

~*~

The sun peeked through the window on the other side of the room, bathing Louis’ bed in sunlight. He yawned and stretched, feeling his muscles protest at the use after being asleep for so long. He sat up and looked over at Harry, who was still sleeping soundly in his bed, curled up on his side, his hair falling into his eyes. Louis suppressed the urge to go over and touch it. He flopped face first back on his bed and groaned into his pillow.

It was his first Saturday at Xavier’s School. There were no lessons and students could do whatever they want (within reason, of course). 

After he had finished doing his washing the night before, Louis had found Zayn on his bed again. He was beginning to think that Zayn preferred his bed over his own with how often Louis found Zayn in his room. Zayn had been flicking through a magazine and when Louis plonked the basket of freshly done laundry on the bed, Zayn didn’t even flinch. Once he had finished with his magazine, he told Louis that they were leaving in the morning when he woke up and then left again.

Zayn Malik was one mysterious boy.

Louis looked over at the digital alarm clock sitting on his bedside table next to his worn copy of _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_. The red numbers glared at him, telling him that it was seven o’clock exactly. Louis huffed and buried his head underneath his pillow. It wasn’t right to be awake that early on a Saturday morning. Not right at all. 

He sighed and got out of bed, wondering if Zayn was awake yet or not. He crossed the room and snuck out of the door as quietly as possible, not wanting to wake Harry, and he stopped in front of Liam and Zayn’s room. He knocked softly in case Liam was still asleep. The door opened a moment later, revealing Liam in workout clothes with a bottle of water in his hand. 

“Hey,” Louis greeted, voice a whisper. “Is Zayn awake?”

Liam grinned and shook his head, stepping out of the room, into the corridor and closing the door behind him. “He won’t be up for hours.”

Louis raised an eyebrow. “Really?” he asked. “He said we were going out today…”

“Zayn is impossible to wake up,” Liam replied. “I start about half five every morning to wake him up for classes. He’s lucky that I don’t need a lot of sleep to function properly. Unlike him. He gets so bitchy if he gets less than twelve hours on a weekend. So where are you going then?”

“No idea,” Louis replied honestly. “He just said he needed to blow off some steam and something about shopping.”

Liam nodded like he understood perfectly what that meant, leaving Louis feeling even more confused than he had been. 

“Why are you awake so early?” Louis asked. “Shouldn’t you be catching up on the sleep you missed during the week?”

Liam shrugged and Louis couldn’t help but notice how his biceps flexed as he did. “I go to bed earlier than everyone else so it works itself out. I don’t mind waking up early; it’s peaceful for a couple of hours before the rest of the mansion wakes.”

“You’re odd,” Louis replied and Liam just laughed. 

“I’m going for a workout in the gym if you want to come along? I can show you how to use some of the equipment?”

Louis bit his lip. “I think I’ll pass,” he said and Liam’s face fell a little, resembling that of a saddened puppy. “Fine, let me get changed and brush my teeth first.”

Liam beamed at him. “Great!”

Liam was far too enthusiastic for seven o’clock on a morning, Louis decided. He crept back into his and Harry’s room and changed into loose clothes that he could substitute for working out clothes. He grabbed his toothbrush and quickly headed for the bathroom before meeting Liam a few minutes later. 

They took the lift to one of the lower floors where the gym was set up and Louis felt intimidated by the sheer amount of machines that were in the room. Liam turned the lights and the air conditioner on. The ducts made a noise before whirring to life and Louis felt the cool air surrounding him as he followed Liam to the treadmills. 

“I usually start with a half an hour jog, then I work on weights for a bit,” Liam said, stepping onto one of the treadmills. 

“You really are Superman, aren’t you?” Louis asked.

“I’m Batman, actually,” Liam replied and Louis laughed loudly. “Do you mind if I play some music?”

“Go ahead,” Louis said. 

Liam picked up a remote control that was sitting on top of his treadmill and he pointed it into the air, pressing play. Louis waited a moment and rap music filled the room. Louis was surprised at Liam’s choice but he put it down to that it was probably good working out music.

Liam pulled off his loose tank top and set laid it over the top bar of the treadmill where there was space. Louis tried not to stare but it was hard. Liam was _fit_. Not just physically, either. He had the body of men Louis had only ever seen in magazines or on the telly. He was utterly gorgeous. 

Shaking his head, Louis tore his gaze away from an unsuspecting Liam and set his treadmill up. Liam guided him through the settings, telling him which button was which and what settings to choose to get the best work out possible. Louis was already self-conscious around Liam and his perfect body; he didn’t need to add another reason to the list. Once Liam moved back to his treadmill, Louis looked over the settings once more and picked one to start on. It wasn’t what Liam had suggested, rather a lower one instead. He didn’t want to kill himself on his first try on the machine, after all. Louis started walking, nodding his head along to the beat of the music playing in the overhead speakers. Next to him, Liam was already running faster than Louis had anticipated for a jog. He shook his head and turned his head back to face forward, increasing the speed on his treadmill after the first ten minutes. Louis was getting into a groove after the fifteen minute mark when he inhaled deeply, smelling what he thought was smoke. He frowned and turned his head to glance at Liam whose skin had steam rising from it.

Louis’ eyes widened when flames sprouted from the backs of Liam’s shoulders. Liam hadn’t seemed to notice yet, too wrapped up in his running. 

“Liam!” Louis tried but Liam didn’t respond. Louis quickly hit the off button on his treadmill screen and grabbed at the water bottle sitting in the cup holder. He quickly uncapped it and threw the water over Liam. Liam stumbled and fell unceremoniously onto the floor, sprawled in a sweaty, wet and steaming mess. 

“What was that?” Liam asked.

“You were on fire!” Louis exclaimed. “Your shoulders! There were flames sprouting from them!”

Liam looked at his shoulders, which were soaked with water from the bottle Louis had tipped on him. He didn’t look impressed at all and he stood up, wincing a little. Louis sucked his bottom lip into his mouth nervously.

“I’m sorry,” he said sincerely. “I know you can create fire and whatever but this was coming out of your shoulders!”

“It’s okay, Louis,” Liam said, patting his hand on Louis’ arm. He was ridiculously close and Louis had forgotten that Liam was shirtless but now he was standing there, in all of his shirtless glory, sweaty and looking far better than Louis should realise. “My abilities tend to react like that when I’m running. I should have warned you.”

“Oh.” Louis felt utterly stupid. He should have known there was a simple explanation for what had happened. “Honestly, who decided that I should be a mutant? I should have my card revoked or something.”

Liam laughed and shook his head. He crossed the room to where a stack of white towels were sitting on a trolley against a wall and picked one up, running it over his face and neck. Louis swallowed thickly and tore his gaze away again, mentally cursing Liam for being so gorgeous. Of course he would be, though. Underneath the pressed trousers and soft, cashmere jumpers was a body to die for. No one would expect sweet-faced Liam to have a body like that – Louis certainly hadn’t. 

“You’re still leaning, Louis, don’t be so hard on yourself.”

Louis looked up from where his gaze had settled on a part of the carpeted floor next to the treadmill he had been using. “I promise to use a fire extinguisher next time.”

Liam grinned at him and headed over to the weights. “Good call.” He picked up a pre-weighted set of dumbbells for each hand and started lifting them. Even his arms were amazing. Louis was going to have to avoid ever working out with Liam again. He was going to hurt something, he was sure of it. 

Instead of standing there, staring at Liam, Louis stepped back onto his treadmill to finish his brisk walk. He decided that it was easier to keep his back to Liam rather than face him while he was still shirtless and sweaty. Louis didn’t even _like_ sweat but somehow Liam even made that look appealing. 

As Louis headed into his last mile, Liam came over to lean on the side of Louis’ machine. He faltered in his steps but quickly regained control, even as Liam muttered out “easy there”. Thankfully, Liam had put his tank top back on and he wasn’t glistening with sweat anymore either, though strands of his hair stuck to his still damp forehead. Louis kept his gaze forwards and took a few breaths. It wouldn’t do for him to fall off his treadmill and land on his arse.

Louis was just winding down when he heard Zayn’s voice. He looked over just in time to see Zayn wrap his arms around Liam from behind and rest his chin on Liam’s shoulder. Louis fixed his gaze on stopping the machine. He stepped off it and grabbed his water bottle, downing what was left of it. 

“So has Liam drawn you up a health plan yet?” Zayn asked, voice teasing.

Liam swatted at Zayn’s hands that were around his middle but the smile on his face countered any annoyance he may have been feeling. “I’m not that bad,” he protested.

“Yeah you are, babe,” Zayn replied. He ran his hands across Liam’s torso before stepping away completely. Zayn yawned widely and rubbed a fist into his eyes. “I need breakfast before we go.”

Louis nodded. “Alright,” he said as he crossed the room to grab a towel from the top of the pile. He rubbed the sweat off the back of his neck, trying not to grimace at how disgusting it felt. “I need to shower too.”

“Yeah, you stink,” Zayn said, poking Louis’ arm as he walked passed. “You really should wear socks with your shoes when you work out.”

Louis looked down at his sockless feet in his shoes and shrugged. “I think I’ll keep doing this now I know that it annoys you.”

Zayn made a face and Liam laughed.

“Have fun today, guys,” Liam said. “And please be back before dark.”

“Yes, Mum,” Zayn replied, rolling his eyes at Liam. Louis caught a look of fondness that crossed Liam’s features before he turned and left the room.

“I’ll meet you in the common room in half an hour,” Louis said and Zayn’s attention snapped back to him.

“Yeah, alright,” Zayn replied. 

Harry was awake by the time Louis got back from his shower. He sat up in his bed, sheets falling down around his naked torso as he stretched and yawned. Louis wondered just how fair it was that he was surrounded by _this_ many good looking guys. He wasn’t going to survive the school year at this rate from how distracted he was getting all of the time.

“Wha’s time?” Harry mumbled, his voice deep and thick with sleep.

“It’s nine,” Louis replied. “I’m heading out with Zayn now. I’ll see you later.”

“Alright,” Harry said through a yawn. “Bye, LouLou.”

Louis paused at the nickname but Harry was already asleep again. His chest tightened uncomfortably but Louis pushed through it and left the room. 

Zayn was already waiting in the common room for Louis when he arrived. He wordlessly handed Louis a savoury muffin and Louis quirked an eyebrow at him.

“It’s from Liam,” Zayn said. “He knew you hadn’t had breakfast yet and, like, I don’t want you passing out on me either.”

“Thanks,” Louis said, taking a bite of the muffin. It was some bran flavoured thing but Louis had tasted worse. He paused for a moment before glancing at Zayn who was flicking through his phone. “Umm.” Zayn glanced up at him and Louis took a deep breath. “I know we’re going shopping and… Well, I don’t have a lot of money.”

“I’ve got it covered,” Zayn replied before turning his attention to his phone again. 

“I… What?” Louis asked. 

“I’ve got it covered,” Zayn repeated without looking up from his phone. He locked the screen and slipped it back into his pocket. “C’mon, we’re going to be late.”

He followed Zayn through the mansion and to the garage where all of the cars were parked, eating his muffin as he walked. Louis was impressed at how many cars there were. “Are these all student cars?”

Zayn looked over his shoulder at Louis and shook his head. “Not all of them,” he started. “A lot of them are staff vehicles but the students who can legally drive and have their licence can keep their cars here, if they want.”

Louis nodded and followed Zayn over to a sleek looking silver Porsche. He stopped in his tracks when Zayn took a set of keys out of his pocket and hit the remote control button to unlock the car. “This is _your_ car?”

Zayn shrugged. “One of them,” he replied before getting into the driver’s seat. Louis shoved the wrapper from the muffin into his pocket and dusted off his hands before climbing into the passenger’s seat. He wanted to touch everything but he didn’t think Zayn would appreciate it. “Don’t, like, get all weird on me, okay?”

“Okay,” Louis replied automatically. “But this is _great_.”

Zayn made a face and shoved the key into the ignition to start the car. “You’re being weird.”

Louis grinned at him and reached for the buttons on the car stereo. “What music do you have? I didn’t expect Liam to be into rap music and now that’s all I have in my head.” Zayn wordlessly pointed to the glove box which Louis opened and rifled through to pick out something they could listen to while driving.

The drive took a couple of hours, mostly thanks to the modifications that Zayn had made on his car. One of the ex-students of the school had been into tinkering with cars, so he had added a turbo function to not only all of Zayn’s cars but anyone else who could pay the price, and apparently, a fair amount of students (and staff, Louis was surprised to note) had been all too willing. It cut their driving time down by a lot, which Louis was thankful for. He didn’t care for driving that much anymore. 

They found a parking spot and Zayn slipped into it with ease. He turned off the engine and reached into his pocket, pulling out his wallet. 

“Here,” Zayn said, pulling out a black Halifax credit card. “Go wild, it’s limitless.” He rattled off the PIN number for Louis to remember. “I’ve got a couple of things I have to do but I’ll meet you back here in a couple of hours, okay?”

He then dropped a small packet into Louis’ lap. Louis glanced at it, seeing a brand new mobile phone. “Zayn, I can’t accept this,” he protested.

“Yeah you can,” Zayn replied. “My number’s already in there, along with the other boys’ numbers. I got them all their phones too, so you’re not special.”

“Ouch, that would hurt if I had feelings,” Louis teased and Zayn just smirked at him. 

“I’ll see you later.”

With that, Zayn got out of the car and Louis hastily did the same, slipping the phone and credit card into his pocket. He heard the car doors lock as Zayn pointed the remote at it as he walked away and he shook his head. Mysterious didn’t even begin to cover what Zayn was.

Louis looked around him and spotted a café a few stores down. He figured the best place to start would be having a nice, hot cup of tea. That he would pay for with his own money. He stood in the short queue and glanced around him. There were several tables filled with people already, all happily chatting and drinking their disgusting flavoured coffees. How people chose coffee over tea, Louis would never know.

He stepped up to the counter when it was his turn and placed his order and within a few minutes, Louis was tucked into a table against a wall and happily sipping on his cup of tea.

He pulled out the new phone and unlocked it. It had a pretty basic set up and had full battery power, which Louis appreciated. He fiddled through some of the apps while drinking his tea before scrolling through the contact list. There were only five contacts listed and four of them were the other boys. The last one was the school’s phone number. Louis’ thumb hovered over Harry’s phone number. He hesitated before biting the bullet and pressing down to call him.

A soft “’ _Lo_?” greeted him from Harry and Louis couldn’t help the smile that spread across his face at the sound of his room mate’s voice.

“Harry, hi,” Louis said. “It’s Louis.”

“ _Hi, Lou_ ,” Harry said happily. “ _Zayn get you a mobile too, then_?”

“Does he do that a lot?” Louis blurted out. “Like, he gave me a credit card and the PIN number and told me to go wild.”

Harry laughed, soft and low in his ear and Louis gripped the table top tightly to save embarrassing himself in the small café. “ _Yeah, he does. It’s Zayn’s way of saying he likes you_.”

There was a pause on the end of the phone and Louis stayed silent, waiting for Harry to continue. He had noticed that Harry tended to tell stories and speak about everything slower than everyone else. It was odd for Louis, who was used to a fast paced _everything_ , to slow down and listen to this beautiful boy talk, because it was always worth it, he discovered.

“ _When he first came to school, Niall, Liam and I were already there and he took us out one weekend. If he wants to, he can tell you the details, but we all walked away having put a bit of a dent in his credit card_ ,” Harry explained. “ _He gave us all one, even though we hardly use them. It’s like a security blanket, if anything._ ”

Louis hummed softly in response. “I just don’t want him to think I’m taking advantage of him.”

“ _You’re not, Lou_ ,” Harry said. “ _This is Zayn’s way_.”

He sighed and picked at the napkin his mug was sitting on. “I wish you guys had come with us. Then I wouldn’t feel so bad about using this card if you were all doing it too.”

“ _Zayn wouldn’t have let us come_.”

Louis frowned at that. “Why not?”

“ _This is his time getting to know you_ ,” Harry replied simply. “ _He can’t do that if we’re all there_.”

“Oh.” That made sense, Louis thought. It didn’t explain why Zayn had left him to his own devices, though, but it made sense. “I’d better go.”

“ _Okay_ ,” Harry replied easily. 

They said a quick good bye each and Louis disconnected the call. He stared down at the phone in his hand for a few long moments, his gaze trained on the display of how long his call lasted before he hit the home button and locked the phone again. He drained the rest of his tea and contemplated getting a second mug. He didn’t know the area at all and didn’t even know where to start looking for clothes. He resolved to wait for Zayn and got up to order another cup of tea, ignoring the black card sitting in one of the card slots in his wallet as he handed over some change for the tea. 

Louis sat back down in his seat against the wall and downloaded some free apps onto his phone, picking Angry Birds to start playing. After a while, he was bored with the game and needed some fresh air. He wandered up the street, taking in as many storefronts as possible. They all varied – each as eye catching as the next. He stopped outside of a shoe store and looked down at his tatty, worn out Vans and sighed. Harry’s voice was in his mind, telling him to just do it but Louis turned away from the shop and walked into a bookstore that was across the road. He figured he could browse in there for a while without having to actually buy anything with the credit card that was burning a hole in his pocket the more he thought about it.

The bookstore was immaculate. Better than any of the other bookstores Louis had been to growing up. Those had all been a little dusty in corners; some books stacked haphazardly on shelves like someone had been putting them away but had got too busy to finish the task. It had been a treat going in there, searching through the seemingly endless supply of books, trying to choose something new and exciting to read. This bookstore that he had stepped into wasn’t anything like that. It was filled with books, though, and Louis didn’t care what it looked like, just that it had books in it.

Growing up, his mum had always made sure that he read a lot. Louis supposed that his wild imagination could be blamed on the sheer amount of books he read before deciding that football was a better use of his time. He always read before bed, though. That was a habit he hadn’t been able to get out of, no matter how hard he had tried. 

He ran his fingers along the spines of a selection of books on a shelf before choosing one at random. He opened it and was hit with that new book smell. Louis looked around briefly before bringing the book to his nose and inhaling deeply. Someone cleared their throat behind Louis and he jumped, barely containing his instant reaction of using his force field. He hastily put the book back on the shelf and left the store without glancing back.

Louis noticed Zayn leaning against his car as he dashed across the road again. He had a cigarette dangling from his fingers and a cloud of smoke around him.

“Didn’t know you smoked.” 

Zayn looked up as Louis approached and shrugged. “Helps with my headaches.”

He leaned against the car next to Zayn and declined the offer for a cigarette himself. 

“I’m cutting back,” Louis started. “You know, being pregnant and all.” He stuck his stomach out as far as he could and Zayn snorted back a laugh. 

“I take that back about you not being special,” Zayn said. “You’re _very_ special, Louis.”

Louis beamed. “I know.”

They fell silent again and Louis smiled when Zayn’s shoulder pressed against his own. It felt comfortable. It was strange but everything about these four boys that he was thrust into living with felt comfortable. Louis didn’t care when Niall put his feet in Louis’ lap and demanded a foot rub, he didn’t mind when Harry would sit a little too closely next to him on the couch in the common room, like he was holding back from curling into Louis. Zayn wasn’t as physical with Louis yet but he had seen the way that Zayn had acted around the other boys and figured unless he did something terrible, that it was only time. Liam was different, though. He was the wild card in Louis’ mind. He could be soft and puppy like one minute but standoffish the next. He guessed that time would tell with Liam, too.

“So,” Louis started. “Are you and Liam a couple…?”

Zayn shot him a sharp look before throwing his cigarette butt on the ground and stomping on it a little too harshly to put it out. “Let’s go. You’ve obviously not done any shopping while I was busy.”

Louis followed Zayn into a random store and tried to catch up with his friend. “It’s okay if you are, you know, like, I don’t care, you know that, right?”

Zayn stopped and rifled through a rack. “What’s your size?”

“That one,” Louis said pointing at a shirt next to Zayn’s hand. “I look good in red.”

Zayn’s gaze flicked over him. “Yeah, you would. Blue, too. C’mon.”

It looked like Louis wasn’t going to get an answer out of Zayn, so he settled for just following Zayn around, holding onto whatever other clothing items Zayn threw into his arms before he was shoved towards the changing rooms. He was laden down with shirts, trousers, jeans, jumpers and even underwear after Zayn had pried that piece of information out of him. It was hard for him to think about being dressed by someone who looked like they stepped out of an issue of _Vogue_ daily.

“Go,” Zayn said. “There’s some other things I want to do before we leave.”

Louis nodded and stepped into the change room. Zayn was on the other side, probably impatiently waiting, so Louis took his chance to talk while they couldn’t see each other. “Zayn…” he sighed and yanked on a pair of red trousers. They made his arse look fantastic when he looked. “God, I’m _so_ gay,” he muttered. He pulled on a shirt and opened the change room door. 

“Looks good,” Zayn said. “And I know you’re gay.” Louis’ eyes widened. “Also, you need a haircut.”

Louis’ hand shot to his hair and he pouted. “Maybe I do need a trim.”

“Hurry up, Louis,” Zayn said, reaching forwards to close the door for him.

Louis tried on all of the clothes that Zayn had picked out for him and he had to admit, Zayn had good taste in what would suit him. Normally Louis didn’t let anyone pick his clothes – he had a very specific style he was sporting and he didn’t want that to be ruined but Zayn’s eye for detail was beyond anything that Louis had thought it would be. 

Thankfully, the one the one thing that Zayn hadn’t fought Louis on was Louis’ choice of braces. He had chosen an array of colours, from single coloured braces to a bold, rainbow set, and had added them to the pile. He did, however, refuse to buy more than five pairs of socks and even then, Zayn had shoved them at him and told him that under no certain terms was Louis leaving the store without socks. Louis _hated_ socks though. He liked his feet to be able to breathe. Zayn said he hated the smell and Louis had felt a little guilty at that. Not enough to actually buy socks but Zayn was insistent.

“We’re not dating, either.”

Louis blinked over at Zayn as Zayn handed over a credit card to the cashier, who rung up the total. “You’re not? But this morning…”

“That’s just how we are,” Zayn replied with a shrug. “That’s how we’ve always been.”

“Alright,” Louis nodded, accepting the bags from the cashier. 

They left the store together and put the bags into the tiny boot of Zayn’s car before Zayn was pushing him towards a salon, insisting that Louis was in dire need of a haircut. 

As Louis sat in the chair, getting his hair done, Zayn was scrolling through his phone in the empty chair next to him. Every few moments, one of the workers would walk passed and just _stare_ openly at Zayn. Louis wasn’t stupid, he knew Zayn was ridiculously attractive but these people were so obvious about it. Zayn, for the most part, didn’t pay them any attention. He was too busy smiling at his phone, his thumbs hitting the screen at a rapid pace, making Louis guess that he was texting someone.

The hairdresser finished a while later and Louis had to do a double take at his reflection in the mirror. He had kept the majority of his fringe, but had asked for some shape and style to be put back into it. He actually looked his age now, he thought as he ran his fingers through his fringe. He thanked the hairdresser and she winked at him. 

“You can pay for this one,” Zayn said. “And I need some more hair products as well, so you can pay for those, too.”

Zayn grabbed a few different bottles off a shelf near the cash register and set them on the counter. He gave Louis a pointed look and Louis huffed under his breath. His hairdresser added a bottle of the styling mousse that she had used on Louis’ hair to the collection and Louis handed over the credit card. It was only after he had put in the PIN number and had accepted the card back that he realised it was _his_ name embossed into the card. 

He shot Zayn a wide-eyed look and Zayn quirked his lips upwards for a moment before taking the bag off the counter. 

“Why is my name on this credit card?” Louis asked as they left the salon. 

“Harry already texted me,” Zayn said by way of explanation. “You know why.”

Louis huffed loudly this time. “I can’t pay you back yet, Zayn.”

Zayn stopped and rested his hand on Louis’ shoulder. “Let it be,” he said. “Honestly. Just let it be. Let’s go get something to eat, I’m starving.”

Louis stayed put for a moment but when Zayn didn’t turn back around, he hastily followed after Zayn. Zayn put the bag into the boot of the car before getting into the driver’s seat. Louis slipped into the passenger’s seat and Zayn pulled away from the kerb with ease. They drove a few blocks and parked outside of a pub that had a cheery sign of a leprechaun with a four leaf clover behind it. He followed Zayn inside and they sat down in a booth together.

After they had ordered and had received their drinks, Zayn fixed Louis with a stare that made Louis feel like he was about to be extremely scrutinised.

“Spill,” Zayn said. 

“Not going to happen,” Louis replied, crossing his arms over his chest defensively. 

Zayn shrugged and pulled out his phone once more, completely ignoring Louis. Louis squirmed in his seat and got up. He muttered that he was going to the toilet to Zayn and made his way across the pub to find it. Once he was inside, he leaned over the sink and took a few deep breaths. A simple conversation shouldn’t freak him out so much but it did. It _heavily_ implied things he didn’t want to talk about. That he wasn’t ready to talk about. Zayn had a right to know _something_ though, his mind supplied. Louis turned the tap on and splashed some cold water on his face. He grabbed some paper towels to pat his face dry and looked at his reflection in the mirror. He had bags under his eyes. He guessed they had been there for a while seeing as there were dark smudges underneath each one. He hadn’t been sleeping properly at all. Not that he had expected to, if he was honest with himself. He had hoped, though.

Their food had arrived by the time that Louis had exited the toilets.

“Thought you’d fallen in,” Zayn commented when Louis sat down.

“I was in an accident,” Louis said by way of reply. “I can’t… The details are sketchy but I was in a coma. That’s it.”

Zayn nodded. “Alright,” he said. “Eat your lunch before it goes cold.”

Even though it hadn’t been a proper conversation by any means, Louis felt better. Just sharing that tiny piece of information made him feel a little easier about everything. Zayn must have sensed it, too as he slid his foot against Louis’ underneath the table. It was comforting in ways that Louis hadn’t expected. He shot Zayn a grateful smile and picked up his burger to start eating it.

“Are any of your family mutants?” Zayn asked after a while.

“Just me,” Louis replied. “That I know of, at least. It’s kind of hard to miss, though, isn’t it?”

“Only if you want it to,” Zayn replied. “Like, Harry’s mum hid it from him for years while Niall’s family were all open about it, like, from the start.”

“What about you?” Louis asked, scooping up some sauce that had dripped out of his burger with his finger. He sucked the digit into his mouth to lick it clean. 

“I’m definitely the only one,” Zayn replied. “I used to get these headaches all the time.”

Louis pressed his foot a little harder against Zayn’s in pre-emptive comfort. 

“It was two years before my abilities started working,” Zayn continued. He took a large bite out of his own burger and Louis ate while waiting for him to continue his story. “I was sitting in the sun in our back yard when a cloud appeared _right_ over my head and started to rain on me. It stayed there, even after I moved away from it and it took half an hour for it to disappear.

“I was a right mess when mum found me,” he said. “Mum had done some extra research after the doctor’s couldn’t find what was wrong with me and discovered mutants. It was a few days after that Doctor Peters came to my house. I was at the school by the end of the week.”

“You still get headaches, though?” Louis prodded. 

“Yeah,” Zayn replied. “Pressure headaches, mostly. They’re a bitch to live with.”

They fell silent while they finished off their food before leaving the pub. They walked aimlessly for a while, Zayn smoking as they walked. The backs of their hands brushed against each other a couple of times before Zayn just grabbed Louis’ hand in his and squeezed it, letting their hands swing between them. Louis hadn’t realised how much he had missed physical contact since his accident happened. Apart from Harry’s occasional sleepy snuggles, this was the most physical contact he’d had in a few weeks. It was nice to just do something simplistic like this with someone else. 

“C’mon, we’d better get back before Liam sends out a search party,” Zayn said, tugging on Louis’ hand. He followed Zayn back to the car and they drove back to the mansion, singing along to whatever CD Zayn had put into the player. 

They arrived back at the mansion after dusk had fallen. Zayn helped Louis carry his bags up to his room, which was devoid of any of their friends. Zayn set the bags at the foot of Louis’ bed before flopping onto it, lying on his back, stretching his arms over his head. His jumper rode up, revealing a patch of skin and a very tantalising trail of hair that disappeared underneath the waistband of Zayn’s trousers.

“Perv,” Zayn teased with a smile.

“Thank you,” Louis said, sitting down next to Zayn. “For today. Even if you have exhausted me beyond reason.”

Zayn shrugged and tugged Louis closer. Louis suddenly felt a burst of warmth covering his back and he looked at Zayn who had his hand hovering over Louis’ back, sunlight streaming from the palm of his hand. It disappeared after a moment and Louis laughed happily.

“That was sick,” he said. 

Zayn rubbed at his temples with his free hand, the one that just had sunlight pouring from it landing softly on Louis’ back, still tingling with warmth. “Yeah, it was,” he agreed. 

They lay there for a few long moments before Louis got up and picked up one of the bags. He put it on the bed next to Zayn’s outstretched legs and immediately pulled the socks out, throwing them haphazardly into the top drawer of his dresser. 

The door to the room opened a moment later and Niall entered, followed by Liam and Harry.

“Thought I heard your Porsche,” Niall said, all but flopping on top of Zayn on Louis’ bed. “Did you bring me presents?”

“Yeah, this,” Zayn said, punching Niall in the arm.

“That’s not a present,” Niall said petulantly. “You do that every day. I want gifts!”

“Here, have some socks!” Louis said happily. He plucked a pair from his drawer and threw them across to Niall who caught them with ease.

“I don’t want socks,” Niall said. “Actually, these are cool. Thanks, Louis!”

Louis grinned and closed his drawer again. 

“Did you have fun?” Liam asked as he sat down on Louis’ bed as well. Harry clambered onto the bed near Zayn’s head and gently moved him so Zayn’s head was in his lap. Louis watched as Harry started rubbing at Zayn’s temples with his fingers like he just _knew_ that Zayn had a persistent headache. Louis wondered how much of that was his empathic ability and how much of it was borne from spending years together. 

“We did,” Zayn mumbled from Harry’s lap. Louis noted that his eyes were closed and he looked a lot more relaxed than he had during their drive.

“Hey, you got a haircut, Lou!” Harry said happily. “It looks nice.”

“Thanks,” Louis replied. He turned back to his drawers so the other boys couldn’t see that his cheeks had heated up from that compliment. 

“And you got clothes! Loads of clothes.” The sound of Niall rifling through his bags made Louis turn around. “Give us a catwalk show!”

Louis gave him a pointed look. “ _No_ ,” he said. “I’m going for a shower.”

He snatched the bag from Niall’s hand and pointedly ignored the pout on Niall’s lips as he grabbed his things for a shower, leaving the other boys all piled on his bed. He had no idea how it withstood the weight of all of them but somehow, it did. 

The shower felt amazing, washing away the day’s grime. Louis took a little longer than he usually would – he didn’t want to leave the firm spray of the just this side of too hot water. He dried off and wrapped his towel around his middle before heading back to his room. It was empty when he got back there and Louis found a post-it note stuck to his pillow which was still indented with the shape of Harry who had been leaning against it. 

_We’re having a movie night in the common room.  
And wear something nice for the lads._

The note in Harry’s chicken scratch read. Louis smiled and stuck the post-it note to the inside of his Harry Potter book. He closed it over and pulled on some of his new clothes, settling on a pair of dark blue checked trousers that could easily double as pyjama bottoms, slipping them on before he pulled a cream coloured jumper over his head. It was soft to the touch and Louis had loved it on sight. He shoved a beanie onto his head, his fringe poking out of the side stylishly. Louis kept his feet bare as he made his way down to the common room. The other lads were all squashed into a couple of the couches with some of the other students, leaving the space next to Harry being the only spot free.

Niall looked up as Louis walked in and cheered loudly. “Looking good, Tommo!” 

Everyone else turned to look at him and Louis grinned at the attention, especially when Harry stuck his fingers in his mouth and wolf whistled at him. Louis rolled his eyes and settled into the spot next to Harry.

“You listened,” Harry said softly when everyone’s attention had turned back to the television screen.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Louis replied. 

Harry grinned at him and curled into Louis’s side, contorting his body in ways that Louis was sure couldn’t be comfortable. He didn’t mind so much when Harry’s arm draped over the crook of Louis’ knee, Harry’s large hand curling into the material of Louis’ trousers in an unexpectedly pleasant and comforting way.

Louis hesitated for a moment before slipping his fingers into Harry’s hair. He swore he imagined Harry pushing back into his hand as the pads of his fingertips gently massaged Harry’s scalp but he found he didn’t mind either way.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three  
 _Harry_  


Lunch was almost over and Harry was going to be late for their training class with Nick but his sister had just sent him a text message saying she’d passed an important and extremely hard test, so he had to call her to congratulate her. He was proud of his sister. She had been studying hard and texting Harry randomly when she needed the reassurance that she shouldn’t drop the subject and just keep going. Harry was more than happy to oblige, of course, because it was his sister.

“ _Anyway, enough of me rambling_ ,” Gemma said a few minutes later. “ _How’s mutant high_?”

Harry grinned and fiddled with the ties of his hoodie. “It’s good,” he replied. “The new boy I told you about is settling in well.”

“ _Harry_ ,” Gemma started slowly. “ _Do you fancy him_?”

Harry fell silent. He should have known that Gemma would have picked up on that factor. Even though they were separated by a large distance, she still knew how to read him better than anyone. “He’s… yes.”

Gemma made a pleased noise into the phone. “ _He’s cute_ ,” she said. “ _From that picture you sent me the other day. He looks like a nice lad_.”

“He is,” Harry replied easily. “He’s well fit and has the best sense of humour. The other lads love him already.”

“ _Good_ ,” Gemma said. “ _If you guys are going to be the next generation of superheroes or whatever, you’ll need to get along_.”

“We’re not going to be _superheroes_ , Gem,” Harry spluttered, flopping back onto his bed, covering his eyes with his free arm. “We’re just mutants.”

“ _Yeah, who happen to have these amazing abilities_ ,” Gemma pointed out. “ _Actually, now that I think of it, you best stay regular guys – can’t have the fate of the world resting on a bunch of kids’ hands_.” 

“Thanks, Gem,” Harry deadpanned. “Nice to know I can count on you.”

“ _Anytime_!” she said cheerily. “ _So tell me more about this Louis boy_.”

“Another time, I’ve got to go, we’ve got training this afternoon,” Harry replied. “Nick will kill me if I’m late.”

“ _Fine_ ,” Gemma relented. “ _Just tell me one thing – what’s your read on him_?”

Harry sighed and tugged on the tie of his hoodie again, feeling his stomach tense a little with worry. “I can’t get a read on him at _all_ ,” he said. “My empathic ability is completely useless when it comes to him. I can’t tell anything that he’s feeling at all.”

“ _Maybe you don’t need to_ ,” Gemma said softly. “ _Maybe he’s your exception_.”

Harry made a noise of agreement and sat up. “I’d better go,” he said. “Thanks for the chat.”

“ _Anytime, H, you know that_.”

They said their good byes and hung up. Harry tucked his phone underneath his pillow and straightened his hoodie before heading to the training room. The other boys were there already, laughing happily. From the looks of it, Louis had just told some joke or another and Harry immediately felt the knot in his stomach loosening. 

“Hey, Harry,” Louis said with a smile. “Come join us, we’re doing impressions!”

“Niall’s the best at it,” Liam added, leaning into Zayn who slipped his arm around Liam’s middle, squeezing him close. 

Harry grinned back at his friends and was about to ask who he should impersonate when Nick came in.

“Alright,” he said, clapping his hands together once. They all turned to face him to hear what he had to say. “Today we’re doing your first group simulation.”

“Simulation?” Louis repeated.

Nick nodded. “I’ll put you in the danger room, set up a simulation and you guys have to complete it. I’ll explain more when we get down there.”

“I don’t think we’re ready to do a group simulation,” Liam said worriedly from off to Harry’s right. “Guys?”

There was a few moments of chatter between the others when Harry turned to them all. “We’re going to have to do it eventually,” he started. “We may as well get it over with.”

“Harry’s right,” Nick said, sounding pleased. “You’d all do well to follow in his footsteps.” Nick winked at Harry and smiled at him for a moment before leading them from the training room. They took the lift to the danger room and they all stepped inside.

“I feel like I should’ve worn socks today,” Louis muttered to Harry as they entered the plain looking room. Harry snorted and bumped his shoulder against Louis’.

“You should always wear socks with shoes,” Harry replied.

Louis scoffed. “My feet don’t like being trapped, Harold.”

Harry grinned at him and shook his head. Harry had heard about the simulation rooms before but had never been in one. It was large and the walls were curved upwards and painted a blue colour. Harry knew these rooms had been there for a long time and were a vital part of any mutant’s training. He didn’t want to be a mutant that had to fight _anyone_ but he understood that it was better to be prepared than not prepared at all and the last thing that he wanted was for his own powers to react badly in a situation where he could have been trained to control them.

“Alright, lads,” Nick started. “Each of you will have a robot that you’ll have to destroy. You’re not allowed to destroy anyone else’s robot or they’ll turn on you. They’re programmed to each of you specifically. There’s no other rules except don’t die. Have fun.”

Nick left the room and Harry looked at the other boys, whose eyes were all wide. Everyone had a matching look of apprehension on their faces. Harry was grateful that he wasn’t the only one who felt that way. He took a deep breath as the room changed, the walls changing colour and shape until it represented some kind of half-destroyed car park. There were broken cars littered everywhere, doors strewn about, broken glass lining the floor in shards and chunks. 

There were a few fires in some of the upturned cars. They looked hollowed out, blackened from the flames. There was a noise somewhere in the distance and Harry looked to his friends.

“Well,” Louis said after a moment. “This is going to be fun.”

A large robot, easily twice as tall as Harry came stepping forwards. It had two letters printed in bold, large writing on its chest. 

“I guess that’s mine, then,” Zayn said upon seeing the robot with the initials _ZM_ on it. “Good luck, lads.”

Harry watched as Zayn produced a bolt of lightning and shot it towards the robot. The robot stumbled and lost its footing for a moment before advancing on Zayn. Before Harry could think to help, the other four robots suddenly appeared. They all varied in sizes, all as tall as the first one but some were larger. Niall’s was easily the bulkiest but Niall was already manipulating the metal of the robot with his powers, breaking off a chunk of metal to turn it into a sturdy metal rod. It seemed to work for Niall and he threw all of his weight at the robot, piercing straight through the robot’s knee with the pole. 

There was a crunching sound and Harry looked up. His robot with the initials _HS_ on the chest loomed over him. It swung its arm back and drove it forwards, sending Harry flying through the room. He groaned when he hit the ground and winced as he stood. He shoved his fringe out of his eyes and readied himself for the next attack. He focused his powers and absorbed every blow that the robot aimed at him. It didn’t hurt, thankfully, not when his powers were absorbing every forceful hit from the robot. He felt his strength grow and he punched the robot in the leg. 

It stumbled forwards and almost landed on Harry as it fell. He channelled his energy and powers into focusing on doing as much damage to the robot before the energy wore off. The robot was on its knees and Harry’s eyes widened as it opened its mouth and breathed fire over him. Reflexively, he threw up his arms over his face. His powers absorbed every last burst of fire and he turned it into something he could use. He punched straight through the robot’s chest and it shuddered around him. It faltered and landed flat on its robotic face. 

For good measure, Harry ripped its head off, pleased when sparks flew from it, indicating that it was well and truly dead. He sat down heavily on the ground to regain his strength. It was the only downside to absorbing powers and energy like he did, he got weak really quickly. His training mostly consisted of trying to maintain a steady energy level after expelling so much but it still left him feeling completely depleted and weak. 

Harry watched the others fighting their robots. Niall had manipulated his robot into sitting down and having a tea party with him. He grinned. If the robot was alive, he was sure that it would be protesting against being forced to have a tea party with Niall. Niall caught his gaze and threw him a grin across the room before waving a hand at the robot. It slumped in its metal seat and the chest cavity opened. The power source for the robot floated out and landed softly in Niall’s outstretched hand. He looked overly smug but Harry could tell he was proud as well. He knew Niall had struggled the most, after Zayn, with his powers. They both got vicious headaches at any time of the day. 

Niall could only focus his abilities if he had a piece of metal on him. Usually it was the metal marble that he kept in his pocket but when doing bigger things, he had a long metal rod that he used to help focus his powers. It had been specially developed for him by one of their old professors before they had retired and Niall had kept it ever since. Harry was sure that if Niall had known they were going to be doing simulation training, he would have brought it with him. 

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see a bright orange flame. Liam had his hands outstretched in front of him, fire pouring from them as he slowly, but surely, melted his robot. It was probably taking a lot of energy as well considering how much firepower he was using. The robot eventually melted enough that it died and Harry saw Liam slump with relief. He was still too weak himself to move, so he was thankful when Niall super-sped over to him and caught him as he started to sway heavily on his feet. 

Harry stood slowly, feeling strong enough to walk over to his other friends. Zayn had his robot contained in what Harry realised was an electrical storm. There were lightning bolts shooting out of the cloud above the robots head, electrocuting it until it became a pile of smoking remains, not unlike Liam’s own. 

As Harry reached the others, he realised he couldn’t see Louis at all. He bit his bottom lip and wondered where Louis was. He had to be around there _somewhere_. Harry looked around and realised that the others weren’t paying attention. Niall was holding Liam close, muttering something in his ear and Zayn made his way over to them, collapsing on Liam’s other side. Liam immediately reached out for Zayn’s hand and they all curled in together, holding each other.

“Where’s Louis?” Harry asked. “He’s the only one who isn’t done.”

The other three boys looked up and Harry’s worry intensified. 

“Zayn, do you think you can clear the storm?” Harry asked, concern lacing his voice. 

“Harry, you know I can’t,” Zayn said apologetically.

“Just try, please?” 

Zayn sighed and he glanced upwards, the entirety of his eyes going white as he concentrated on shifting the clouds that had appeared with his electrical storm on his own robot. Once they had disappeared, Harry could see clearly. He still couldn’t see Louis but he could see Louis’ robot and figured he wasn’t far behind. 

“Harry.” Liam’s voice carried over to him but Harry ignored the warning in it. This was a simulation that wouldn’t turn off until it was completed. He had no idea where Louis was – he could be hurt for all Harry knew, or unable to turn visible again, or something just as drastic. Harry didn’t want to take the chance that Louis wasn’t able to wake up, or shake out of being invisible for the sake of a simulation.

A streak of blue caught Harry’s eye and he spotted Louis running from the robot that had started chasing him now that he was visible again. Harry could tell, even from how far away he was, that Louis was tired. He looked out of breath and close to collapsing. Harry looked around, trying to find something that he could use to help Louis. He summoned all of the energy that he could, absorbing it from his surroundings as he picked up the severed head of his own robot. He waited until he had a clear shot and threw it across the room. It hit Louis’ robot square in the back. He grinned when its steps faltered enough for Louis to get out of its line of sight.

The grin faded from Harry’s face when he realised that the robot was coming for him. It seemed a _lot_ more vicious than his robot had been. He realised a little too late that he didn’t have enough energy left to be able to even absorb any of the blows the robot was sure to give him. He didn’t even know if he had the energy to run away.

The robot descended upon him and reared its fist back. Just as it was about to hit him, a force field suddenly appeared around Harry. The robot hit the force field and was blasted backwards, stumbling heavily on its giant feet. Harry glanced over at Louis, who had his hand out stretched, palm up, towards Harry, sheer concentration evident on his face. He looked as tired as Harry felt. The robot turned back to Louis and before it could even make its first move, Louis ran at it, seemingly stepping up into thin air but Harry could see the slight blue hue of Louis’ force field acting like steps in the air with every movement his feet made. 

Louis climbed up onto the back of the robot’s shoulders, tucking his knees in a tight hold. He swayed dangerously as the robot tried to dislodge him. Harry watched, stunned, as Louis created a force field around the robot’s head before digging his fingers under the metal and pulling his head off in a series of sickening crunches. The robot wobbled underneath Louis and fell to the ground with a heavy thud. Louis clambered off the robot and fell onto the dirt. He took a moment and the force field around Harry shimmered away. Harry hastily made his way over to Louis and lifted him up to his feet. He wrapped himself around Louis in a tight hug, letting Louis sag into him.

“Thanks,” Louis said, his voice muffled by the skin of Harry’s neck where his face was buried. Harry squeezed Louis to him, probably a little too tightly, but Louis didn’t object. Harry pulled back a moment later to see a large scratch going across Louis’ forehead. He pushed Louis’ fringe out of the way and ran his finger along it. Louis winced at the touch an Harry muttered an apology before he pressed his lips to the end of the graze. 

“Alright?” Harry asked. Louis nodded and loosened his hold on Harry.

“Yeah, I’m alright,” Louis replied. 

Harry kept his arm around Louis’ waist as they turned to the other boys. The simulation had faded away, restoring it to the previously empty room that it had been. Everyone looked worn out, dirty and in desperate need of a shower and probably twelve hours of sleep. Louis leaned heavily into Harry’s side and Harry was certain that if he wasn’t holding Louis up, he would have already collapsed. 

“Good work, Tommo,” Niall said from where his head was in Zayn’s lap. 

“Thanks,” Louis replied. “You too. Saw you having a tea part with your robot.”

Niall grinned at him and held up his fist which Louis gently bumped with his own before swaying on his feet. Harry urged him to sit down on the ground in front of the other boys. Their shoulders pressed together firmly as they sat down, legs sprawled out in front of them, somehow touching the other three boys at the same time. 

“That was brutal,” Zayn spoke up. “We weren’t ready.”

Liam made a noise of agreement. The door to the danger room opened and Nick strode in. Harry noticed a look of disdain on his face and he looked up at their teacher curiously.

“Good work, lads,” he said. “Niall, Liam, Harry and Zayn, you all pass.”

Harry frowned. “What about Louis? He completed the simulation, too.”

“Yes but he had help,” Nick said. “You were meant to destroy your robot individually. Louis didn’t, therefore he fails the lesson.”

“That’s shit!” Harry protested. “If anything, you should be failing _me_ because I helped him!”

“You had already passed, Harry,” Nick said. “Since you were one of the first done. Niall would have been first if he hadn’t had a tea party with his robot.”

“Then you should fail me for that,” Niall cut in, sitting up to look at Nick properly. “Louis completed the simulation _just_ like we did.”

“My word is final,” Nick said. “Class dismissed.”

Nick left the room after that, the door staying wide open in his wake. Harry chanced a glance over at Louis who was staring at the ground. 

“Lou…”

“It’s fine, Harry,” Louis started. “He’s right, I had help.”

“That’s not fair, though!” Harry exclaimed. “You _did_ the work.”

“Harry.” Louis said his name so softly that Harry had to stop and listen to him. “Don’t worry about it, yeah?”

Louis stood, a little shakily, but he eventually got himself upright and dusted his hands on his trousers, which Harry just noticed had a large rip in the leg, showing off Louis’ tanned thigh. As Louis shifted, he noticed a smattering of red and caught Louis’ hand in his own.

“Lou, you’re hurt,” he said, getting up on his knees. “Shit, Lou, that looks deep.”

“It’s nothing,” Louis replied, brushing Harry off.

“Liam, look at this.” Harry physically turned Louis towards Liam and pulled the material away from the particularly nasty looking cut on Louis’ leg. Liam frowned and looked up at Louis.

“You should go to the medic wing, Louis,” Liam said. “Harry’s right, that looks deep.”

Louis huffed. “Fine, I’ll go,” he relented. “Then I’m going for a nice, long, _hot_ shower.”

Louis shuffled from the room, leaving the rest of them behind. Harry looked after him forlornly. He wasn’t sure what had gone on but none of it made sense. Nick’s behaviour, the way that Louis’ robot had been a lot more vicious than the rest of theirs. It was strange. Even though Harry had never participated in a simulation before, he knew that there had been something amiss there. He just didn’t know _what_.

“C’mon, let’s go,” Zayn said after a few minutes. “Louis had the right idea. A hot shower sounds good right about now.”

Harry stood along with the others and lost himself in his thoughts as he left the danger room for the hot showers that were waiting for him on their floor.

~*~

_Louis_   


Louis was sure that this much leather hadn’t ever existed outside of a motorcycle gang before. He certainly hadn’t seen so much leather in his life. He wasn’t entirely sure how he was _supposed_ to actually get the leather clothes onto his body, considering it all looked like it would barely fit his pinkie finger, let alone his entire body but the other boys didn’t seem to be having the troubles that he was.

They had walked into their training room after lunch to find a rack filled with leather clothing, their names on labels on each of the items. They were apparently their X-Men suits and had been created mostly for their danger room training purposes. Louis crinkled his nose in distaste at the sheer amount of leather they were all expected to wear. He wasn’t entirely sure why they had to have leather suits just for training. It didn’t make sense. Leather wasn’t a very forgiving material on the skin at all.

“This is going to chafe,” Liam said as he shimmied into his leather trousers. Louis bit back a laugh. Only barely because he knew the others would laugh at him the second he tried to put on the leather trousers that were sitting next to him on the chair, mocking him with their tightness.

Harry, of course, pulled on his leather trousers with ease. His legs looked impossibly long in them and his arse looked fantastic. Louis dragged his gaze away from Harry’s arse and took a breath. If the other boys could do it, then so could he.

“I don’t get why we have to wear _leather_ though,” Niall said, almost falling backwards as he zipped up the fly of his trousers. He was still shirtless but Louis could tell that he was struggling to keep even his trousers on.

“It’s just for training,” Liam replied. Even he looked uncomfortable with his outfit as he slipped on a tight fitting, long sleeved leather top.

“This is ridiculous,” Zayn said, throwing down his top down. “Not only do they look stupid but they’re uncomfortable. I could design something better than this.”

“Mate, you design it and I’ll make it,” Niall replied easily. “I’ve got contacts that can get us the material that Doctor Richards used.”

Zayn nodded. “Deal,” he said, sitting down on the seat behind him. “I am not getting into that. Leather jackets are one thing but this is stupid.”

“I think they’re great!” Harry said cheerily from across the room. Everyone turned to look at him. He was the only one of them who had the entirety of the leather outfit on. Louis hated to admit that he looked amazing as well. 

“You would,” Zayn muttered bitterly, leaning back heavily in his chair. 

Louis bit his lip as he took in the curves of Harry’s spine underneath the leather. It clung perfectly to Harry and he didn’t look uncomfortable in the slightest. He looked like he was at home in the outfit. 

“Done,” Niall said, startling Louis from his Harry in leather thoughts.

“Done what?” Louis asked.

“I emailed my contact. He should get back to me by the end of the day,” Niall replied, setting his phone down next to him.

“Good,” Liam said, taking off the leather trousers. “Because it’s like an oven in there. I’m not sure the leather wouldn’t melt straight off me if I used my powers.”

“Are they compatible with our powers?” Louis asked. He picked up the leather jacket with his left and focused on turning just his right hand invisible. He reached out to touch it and the leather shimmered for a moment before turning invisible. “That’s not a thorough test; I could always turn my own clothes invisible without realising it.”

“Am I the only one who likes the leather?” Harry asked, turning to face them.

“Yes,” all four of them chorused. 

Louis shook his head. “Take it off, Harry,” he said. “You look like a baby biker.”

Harry pouted but started undressing anyway. Louis looked away and caught Zayn staring at him. He felt his cheeks heat up but didn’t pay it much attention. He was sure that Zayn knew of his raging crush on Harry but he was, at least, kind enough not to say anything to the other boys.

It would be awkward, especially since he and Harry shared a room. Zayn seemed to get that, and hadn’t said anything, not even to Louis about it. Louis was sure that his crush would dissipate given time, they usually did. 

A burst of flames caught Louis’ attention and Liam frowned down at the melted leather in his hands. He made a disgusted face and pushed the charred remains off his lap and looked over at them.

“These definitely don’t react with our powers well,” Liam said, sounding put out. “I wouldn’t last a minute in the field with a suit like this.”

“Definitely not,” Zayn agreed. He got up and crossed the room to where Liam was, effectively leaving Harry and Louis alone on their side of the room. 

“I really liked these leather trousers,” Harry said as he hung them up neatly on a hanger before putting them back on the rack their outfits had all be on to begin with. 

“Keep them, then?” Louis offered. “They were designed for us; you may as well keep them if you like it.”

“Really?” Harry asked. “I… It wouldn’t be weird?”

“Of course it will but it’s okay,” Louis replied with a reassuring smile at Harry. He stood and crossed over to Harry, who was holding onto the rack with one hand. “You could wear them out clubbing or something.”

Harry’s gaze locked with Louis and he nodded slowly. Louis felt his heart beating a little faster and before he knew it, he had turned invisible. He took a deep breath and patted Harry on the shoulder so that Harry knew he was still there. 

“I’m gonna go,” Louis said. “I don’t think this is going to wear off for a while.”

“Okay, Lou,” Harry said softly and Louis tried to ignore the tinge of disappointment in his voice. “See you later.”

~*~

There was a post-it note stuck to Louis’ force field when he woke up on a Saturday morning. Louis rubbed at his eyes to make sure that he wasn’t seeing things but the note was still there, sticking perfectly to the force field like it was a window. Louis grinned as he got out of bed and reached though his force field to pluck the note off before lowering it completely.

The nightmares had lessened in the three weeks that Louis had been at Xavier’s School. They still happened but nowhere near as violent or as intense as they had been on his first night. He hadn’t hurt anyone else, which he was thankful for, but his force field still activated itself the second Louis fell asleep. Harry had told him that’s what happened after a week of it happening. He said he had waited for Louis to fall asleep and every time, his force field came up. 

Louis still didn’t know why it did it but when he had nightmares as well, it left him feeling pretty drained the next day when he woke. Louis felt like he had a little more control over his force field when he was awake, which was helpful. The training had finally started to pay off, despite Nick’s obvious distaste for Louis. 

Louis turned the post-it note over in his hand and grinned as Harry’s all too familiar chicken scratch filled the square sheet. 

_Meet me in the student kitchen when you wake_ was all it said. Louis shook his head, still smiling, and put the post-it note into a spare notebook that he had been keeping Harry’s notes in. After the other week when Harry first left him a note, Louis had figured it was easiest to keep them in a notebook, rather than his Harry Potter novel. He knew it was probably stupid and too sentimental but it gave Louis a sense of belonging where he otherwise didn’t have anything. Harry was sweet. Probably too sweet but it made everything he did all the more endearing. The more Louis got to know Harry, the more his crush on him developed. He was just glad that he could still function around the other boy for the most part.

Louis changed out of his pyjamas and used the bathroom before going to the student kitchen on their floor to meet Harry. From the closed doors that he passed on the way, he figured that Niall and Zayn were still asleep. Since it was a Saturday morning, Louis guessed that Liam would be in the gym, as usual. 

As he approached the kitchen, Louis could smell the rich, wonderful smells of Harry cooking. That was another thing that had surprised him about Harry – he loved to cook. Anything you asked him to make, he could do it. The previous Sunday, Harry and Niall had made a full English fry up for breakfast and Louis had felt so full afterwards that he thought he could burst. Niall had eaten more than all of them combined, claiming that his powers used up all of the energy he stored pretty quickly. Louis would have called him out for lying if he hadn’t known how true it was.

A sweet smell wafted from the kitchen and Louis leaned against the doorway, watching Harry work. He had a bowl filled with something that he was steadily pouring into muffin cases. Harry worked diligently, filling each of the cases as evenly as possible before setting the bowl aside. He opened the oven and slotted the tray into it. He set the timer on the front of the oven and turned around. The first thing Louis noticed was the bright red apron that he was wearing. The second thing he noticed was the smear of white flour across Harry’s cheek. He had it in his hair as well, like he had pushed his fringe aside with flour on his fingers. 

“Morning,” Louis said and Harry’s head lifted up, a bright smile gracing his lips. 

“Morning!” Harry repeated enthusiastically. “You alright?”

Louis nodded. “Yeah, I’m alright.”

Harry dusted off his hands on his apron. “Want to help? I’m making muffins for Liam. I figured we could make pancakes for breakfast for everyone, too.”

“…Sure,” Louis replied. He stepped further into the room and Harry handed him a green apron. Louis slipped the material over his head and tied it at the back in a tight knot so it wouldn’t move. He pushed the sleeves up on his jumper and turned to Harry.

“Alright, grab a whisk and start beating that for me,” Harry said, pushing a half-filled bowl of ingredients towards Louis.

“How do you whisk?” Louis asked after picking up the utensil. Harry should be proud that he even knew which item the whisk _was_. 

Harry paused and looked at him. “One sec,” he said, setting the bowl that he had picked up aside. Louis glanced over, wondering what Harry had been making. The batter in his bowl was thick and a little lumpy. “I’m making banana muffins for myself,” Harry said after a moment. “I’ll make chocolate ones for you, Zayn and Niall, too.”

Louis grinned. “You’re the best!”

Harry picked up the whisk and placed it in Louis’ hand, helping him get a proper grip on the utensil. “It’s pretty simple once you have a rhythm,” he explained. Harry stepped a little behind Louis so he could get Louis’ hands positioned properly. His hand closed over the top of Louis’ own and guided it in a motion that had the eggs beating into the other ingredients smoothly. Harry kept the movement going for a few more long moments before stopping. “Think you can do it on your own now?”

Louis nodded dumbly and turned his gaze back to the bowl in front of him. He could do this. He could whisk this – whatever it was that he was making. Once he was sure that everything was mixed in properly, he set the whisk down on the side of the bowl, glad when it didn’t topple straight into the batter. 

“What next?” 

“I put these muffins in the oven and we can start making pancakes,” Harry replied. 

“What do we have to do for that?” Louis asked, trying to show his eagerness for helping.

Harry smiled easily at him. “You’ve already done it, Lou,” he said. 

“Really?” Louis blinked. “When?”

“The bowl you were mixing is the pancake batter.”

Louis turned back to the bowl in front of him and let out a surprised noise. “Huh,” he mumbled. “That’s sick.”

“I told you it’s pretty easy,” Harry said. He had his back to Louis as he poured batter into the muffin cases in front of him. Louis crossed the kitchen to watch Harry a little more closely, taking in the way Harry’s tongue poked out from between his lips as he concentrated. Louis found it endearing. Harry put the tray into the oven and poked at the other muffins with a metal skewer before closing the door back over. “Have you ever cooked pancakes before?” he asked, fixing his gaze on Louis.

“Nope,” Louis replied. “I tend to burn things in the kitchen…”

“I’ll show you,” Harry promised. He put a fry pan on top of the oven and coated it with a spray on oil. “The trick is not to have the pan too hot,” he said as he grabbed the bowl off the counter where Louis had left it. “Here.”

Louis stepped closer and watched as Harry carefully poured some of the batter into the pan. It wasn’t as big as Louis thought it was going to be, but rather it was a nice, decent size. Bubbles began to form in the batter in the pan a few moments later. Louis looked up at Harry’s face, seeing a small smile spread across his lips.

“There we go,” Harry said, carefully sliding the spatula underneath the pancake to flip it over. “Perfect.”

“Yeah,” Louis agreed, not taking his eyes off Harry’s face. He blinked and tore his gaze away, looking back down at the golden brown pancake. They waited a moment before Harry took the pancake out of the pan and set it on a plate next to him.

“D’you wanna give it a try?” Harry asked. He offered the bowl of pancake batter out to Louis. He accepted it, albeit warily, and poured a small amount of batter into the pan. It spread a little further than Louis would have liked it to but he figured he could flip it. 

Harry left his side to get more eggs from the refrigerator and cracked them into another bowl. Louis watched him as he worked. Harry worked fluidly, movements all easy like he had done this many times before. Louis had to wonder just how many times Harry _had_ done something like this before. He knew that Harry had been at the school for two years and probably had to fend for himself every now and then. The school was pretty lenient on the students doing their own thing for breakfast or other meals on the weekend. There were still meals every night in the dining hall, but they weren’t compulsory to attend like they were on a weeknight, especially since so many students would leave on a weekend to go back home for a visit, or do whatever else they wanted. 

It both warmed Louis inside and made him feel a little sad that Harry had to learn so early how to cook for himself. Louis couldn’t imagine having had to deal with his powers that young like Harry and the other boys had to. He was struggling to handle them now, even though he was eighteen. Louis had the other boys to rely on, but they had no one when they first started. The school always had students coming in every year, though, so Louis knew that logically they weren’t alone but it was different, especially considering how close they all were. They were close before Louis even arrived at the school but they had welcomed him into their circle with open arms. 

Being with them was the first time that Louis had felt whole in a long time. 

He was lucky that he had found such great friends in this new and, if he was honest, completely terrifying environment. Everyone around him was special and had the most unique abilities. A group of younger children at the school all had shape shifting abilities and they had banded together and became fast friends like Louis had with Harry, Zayn, Liam and Niall. It was nice to know that he wasn’t the only one who felt out of his depth with all of this mutant stuff.

The school work side of things was less than to be desired in Louis’ mind, as well. He just wasn’t the studious kind. He thought he would have been done with school by now but everything was different here. He worked diligently with the boys every evening, doing school work and wishing that he was doing anything but. Liam was pretty strict about each of them spending time on their school work, not just power training or physical training. It was like being stuck between a rock and a hard place because both could be tedious at times.

After his failed simulation test, Nick had pulled Louis aside and had spoken with him, at length, about his powers. He still wasn’t entirely sure what Louis was capable with his powers and he had brought in a mind reader to poke into Louis’ mind to see what was going on. Louis had been on his guard immediately but he need not have worried. According to the mind reader, he had a shield around his mind, a manifestation of his force field powers, and his mind couldn’t be read at all. 

Relief had washed over Louis at that. He didn’t want people poking into his mind and reading his every thought. It was bad enough that he was still getting used to students at the school having powers that he hadn’t even heard of before, let alone someone trying to invade his mind. 

It had made him wonder, though, if Harry could sense his emotions or not. Harry’s empathic ability, at least according to Niall, was pretty strong. Harry hadn’t spoken much about it, other than confirming that he was an empath. It made Louis curious. If a mind reader couldn’t pick up on any of this thoughts, was Harry able to pick up on his emotions? Harry hadn’t indicated that he could, and Louis was sure that Harry would have picked up _something_ , especially since they shared a room and Louis’ frequent nightmares. He figured that Harry couldn’t otherwise he would have said something, or tried to comfort Louis, or maybe ran away when he felt the sheer level of angst coming from Louis’ nightmares. It was that thought which made Louis feel better. Harry was far better off not knowing what Louis was feeling without Louis specifically telling him.

“Lou! Your pancakes are burning!”

Harry dashed in front of him and lifted the pan off the stovetop, switching off the hotplate as well, setting it onto the side of the sink. Inside the pan was a blackened pancake that Louis had forgotten all about while he had been watching Harry, lost in his thoughts. 

“I’m so sorry!” Louis apologised. 

Harry picked up the spatula and started scraping the charred remains out of the pan. “It’s okay,” he said. “You just have to keep an eye on these things.”

Louis chewed his bottom lip. He had managed to mess up something simple. 

A burnt smell filled the kitchen, leaving a rancid scent in Louis’ nostrils. He crossed the room and opened the window wide to let in some fresh air. Harry scraped at the pan until every last piece of burnt pancake had been cleaned out. 

“I’m sorry,” Louis repeated.

“It’s alright,” Harry said, obviously trying to reassure Louis. He gave Louis a small smile before washing the pan out to get rid of the blackened remains. “I should’ve been watching with you.”

“It’s not _your_ fault at all,” Louis said, frowning at Harry. “I was in my own little world, it’s completely my fault.”

Harry shrugged. “I’ll get this clean and then we can finish making them before the other boys come in for breakfast.”

“Alright,” Louis agreed, taking the pan from Harry once he was done so that he could dry it thoroughly. He sprayed some more of the oil into the pan and let Harry get the hotplate back to the right temperature. 

“Here, you pour it in,” Harry said after a few long moments. He passed the bowl back to Louis and Louis shot him an apprehensive look before pouring in some of the batter. It spread across the pan and Louis set the bowl back down on the counter top next to the stove. The batter started to bubble a few moments later and Harry passed the spatula to Louis, giving him an encouraging grin.

Louis slipped the spatula underneath the pancake and flipped it over. It folded up underneath itself as he turned it and Louis let out a huff of annoyance. 

“Happens to me all of the time,” Harry said, setting a clean plate down on the other side of the bowl so that the pancakes could go on it. “Make the next one smaller and you’ll be able to get the spatula under it just fine.”

“Alright,” Louis replied with a nod. He could do this, he told himself. He could make pancakes with Harry. 

Once the first pancake was out of the pan, Louis sprayed it with oil again at Harry’s instruction and poured a smaller amount of batter into it. He wanted to get it as perfect as possible. Harry stayed by his side the entire time and once the mixture was all gone, Harry put the plate into the oven to keep them warm. Louis felt an odd sense of achievement come over him. It was probably nothing to someone as culinary skilled as Harry but Louis was proud of himself for not burning down the kitchen or burning even more pancakes.

“Would you like a muffin?” Harry asked as he set the ones from earlier on cooling racks. 

“I’d love one,” Louis replied, crossing over the kitchen to where Harry was. Harry passed him one of the muffins and Louis peeled back the casing enough so that he could take a bite. It was heavenly. Harry really was fantastic at cooking and baking.

“The others should be awake soon,” Harry said. Louis flicked his gaze up to Harry in time to see Harry licking his lips and he nodded. “I might do a fry up again, if the boys want it.”

Louis smiled around his muffin and nodded. He swallowed and covered his mouth with his hand to talk. “I can’t promise that I won’t burn anything else but I can try and help, if you want it?”

Harry beamed at him. “Yeah, I’d love it.”

Louis turned his gaze back down to his muffin and took another bite before he could embarrass himself by turning invisible or blurting out something stupid to Harry. It both infuriated and bewildered him with just how enamouring Harry was. He just had to smile at Louis and Louis’ insides would turn to mush. He was completely and utterly captivating and Louis just wanted to spend forever basking in his amazing personality. 

No one in his entire life had ever captured his attention quite like Harry Styles had.

Shortly after Louis finished his muffin, Niall, Zayn and Liam all wandered into the kitchen.

“Thought I smelled something delicious,” Niall said, heading straight for the oven that was cooking the last of the muffins and still keeping the pancakes warm.

“Yeah, I bought a new aftershave,” Louis commented. Niall grinned up at him and super sped over, all but crushing Louis in a tight hug.

“You _do_ smell nice,” Niall said. “Like muffins, mostly.”

Louis chuckled. “Yeah, well, while you lot have been slacking, Harry and I have been slaving in here over making these muffins.”

“You were making food?” Niall asked, pulling back enough, but keeping his arm firmly around Louis’ shoulders.

“I did,” Louis replied, poking Niall in the side. 

“Better not eat anything, then,” Niall joked.

“He did really well, actually,” Harry piped up from where he was pulling the pancakes out of the oven. He set the plate down on the counter top before getting five others out of the cupboard above his head. “We had one minor mishap but he did good.”

Louis grinned widely. “See, Nialler, I did _good_.”

Niall snorted and removed his arm from around Louis to sit down at the table on the other side of the room. Harry set out the plates for each of them, and put the pancakes in the middle. Liam and Zayn sat on one side of the table while Niall sat at the top end, reaching for the first pancake on the pile. 

Louis glanced over at Harry and Harry grinned at him before setting down some toppings for their food. 

“I cut up fruit earlier as well,” Harry said to all of them in general, returning to the fridge. “In case anyone wants any.”

“Here, I’ll help,” Louis said, taking one of the platters of chopped up fruit from Harry. There were all kinds of fruits on there and Louis’ stomach grumbled at the sight of it all. He picked up a piece of banana and popped it into his mouth, chewing as he walked back to the table, setting the platter down next to the pancakes so that it was within reach of everyone. “Anyone want a cuppa?” he asked.

“I’d love a tea,” Liam said before shoving a forkful of food into his mouth.

“Coffee, please,” Zayn added.

Niall nodded and pointed at Zayn, his mouth too filled with food to respond. 

“Harry?” Louis prompted.

“You sit, I’ll do it,” Harry said, pulling out Louis’ chair.

“I got this, yeah? You sit and enjoy breakfast since you’re the one who did most of it.” Louis pressed his hand onto the middle of Harry’s back firmly, guiding him back to the table. 

He put the kettle on and set up everyone’s mugs. He quickly got the milk from the fridge and made his way over to the table, picking up a pancake to put on his plate. The kettle boiled and Louis turned back to it to make everyone’s teas and coffees. He passed over Zayn and Niall’s first since they were made the quickest and once he had brewed his, Niall and Harry’s cups of tea to perfection, he brought them over to the table. Harry reached over and took Niall’s mug from Louis and placed it in front of him before reaching for his own.

Louis set his own mug down on the table before finally seating himself. He chuckled when he saw that Harry had arranged a smiley face on his pancake with strawberries, banana pieces and some freshly made whipped cream. He grinned over at Harry who gave him a bashful smile before turning back to his own breakfast. Louis pulled out his phone and quickly snapped a picture, ignoring the other boys’ looks as he tucked into his meal. He shifted in his seat and a moment later, he felt Harry’s knee pressing against his own underneath the table. Louis felt warmth flood through him from where their knees touched and he pressed into it a little more, letting the touch comfort him.

After breakfast, the other boys pitched in to help clean up. Harry ended up cooking them an entire full English breakfast, much to everyone’s satisfaction, even Liam’s, who had protested at first but decided to just give in since he had been craving sausages. Louis had helped with the cooking as well, following Harry’s instructions carefully and precisely so that he wouldn’t mess up again. Even Niall had complimented Louis’ cooking abilities, clearly impressed when he ate mouthful after mouthful of the eggs Louis had made. 

“I’m so full I could burst,” Zayn said as he leaned against the counter, slowly drying dishes as Liam passed them to him. “I think I should just go back to bed after this.”

“Then do it all again when you wake up?” Louis teased.

“Not bloody likely,” Zayn replied. “I need a smoke and some more sleep.”

He passed the tea towel off to Niall, who protested loudly but Zayn was already out of the door. Louis grinned at Niall and shrugged before he turned back to Harry who was putting the left over muffins into air tight containers. Louis gently bumped his shoulder against Harry’s own and Harry looked up, smiling at him. 

“Thanks for letting me help today,” Louis said softly, even though he knew that Liam and Niall could hear them talking, if they really wanted to.

“You were good,” Harry replied honestly. 

Louis felt his stomach flip flop pleasantly as Harry lifted his hand and squeezed Louis’ shoulder. 

“I’m going to do some yoga with Liam after this, do you wanna come?” Harry asked.

Louis nodded before he realised what he was doing. “Sure,” he replied. It was worth it for the way Harry beamed at him, dimple poking into his cheek.

“It’s fun,” Harry said. “No matter what Niall or any of the other students might think, yoga is fun. Very relaxing.”

“I bet,” Louis replied. His mind immediately conjured images of Harry in tiny, tiny shorts and a baggy tank top doing yoga poses that showed off his flexibility. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the images and swallowed thickly. It wouldn’t do him any good if he popped a boner in the middle of the kitchen, especially not with Niall and Liam just mere feet away from them. Louis cleared his throat and shuffled awkwardly on his feet. “I… I’ll go get changed, then.”

“Alright,” Harry said. “I’ll meet you in our room.”

Louis nodded and made his way out of the kitchen back to his and Harry’s bedroom. Zayn was just coming back down the corridor when Louis reached the bedroom. 

“Breakfast was good,” Zayn said, following Louis into the room. “Did you have fun making it with Harry?”

Zayn flopped onto Louis’ bed and Louis kicked his shin from where it was dangling over the side. He winced and Louis threw him a smug look. 

“That’s what you get,” Louis said, pulling out a pair of loose trousers that he could use to do yoga in. He changed into them, setting his jeans on his desk chair. 

“He’s not a bad lad to have a crush on,” Zayn said a few moments later. Louis looked over at him and raised both of his eyebrows. “C’mon, you can’t deny it, Lou. It’s pretty obvious from where I’m standing.”

“You’re lying down,” Louis quipped. “On my bed, I might add.”

“Yeah, your bed is comfy,” Zayn replied, bouncing on it a couple of times. Louis shook his head at Zayn but couldn’t hide the smile on his face. 

He pulled off his shirt and threw it on top of his jeans before rifling through his drawers for another one. He hoped that Harry couldn’t see how obvious his crush was. He didn’t want Harry to be uncomfortable at all. Seeing as they shared a room, it could get uncomfortable pretty quickly and Louis didn’t want that. He didn’t want Harry to think that he was a weird gay predator or someone who wanted to convert him. He just wanted to enjoy his crush on Harry in silence.

“A penny for your thoughts, Lou,” Zayn said after a few long moments.

Louis looked over at him and shrugged. He pulled a shirt out from his drawer and snapped it closed. “I was thinking maybe later on you could help me with my English homework?”

Zayn sat up and snatched the shirt from Louis’ hands. “Bullshit that’s what you were thinking.”

“You’ll never know,” Louis replied, reaching for the shirt. “You’ll just have to believe me.”

Zayn tugged on the shirt and Louis toppled forwards, landing half on Zayn, half on the mattress.

Of course, that’s when Harry had to walk into the bedroom. Louis was still shirtless and Zayn’s hands were on his hips, holding him steady. The shirt had fallen onto the floor and Louis hastily grabbed it and pulled it over his head. Harry just stared at them for a moment before turning to his own chest of drawers. 

Louis kicked Zayn in the shin again for good measure and Zayn glared at him.

“Shoo, go away now,” Louis said, pulling Zayn up from the bed. 

“Have fun with yoga,” Zayn said as he left the room.

Louis sucked his bottom lip into his mouth and chewed on it. Harry still had his back to him and he shucked off his shirt, revealing an expanse of pale skin that Louis just wanted to touch all over. With his hands or his mouth, he wasn’t awfully fussed as long as he got to touch it. The moment was short lived as Harry pulled on another shirt, this one was considerably cleaner and didn’t have flour on the arms or sides.

“It wasn’t what it looked like,” Louis blurted out.

Harry looked over his shoulder at Louis. “What?”

“Zayn and me,” Louis said. “He… It wasn’t what it looked like. We weren’t doing…” he paused, feeling stupid. “Anything,” he finished. “We weren’t doing anything. He was just teasing me about something?”

“Yeah?” Harry asked and Louis nodded. 

“Yeah,” he replied but didn’t elaborate. He couldn’t, considering the topic he and Zayn had been talking about was Harry. 

“Alright,” Harry said easily. “Liam’s gonna meet us downstairs. D’you want to borrow a yoga mat?”

“Yes, please.” 

Harry reached underneath his bed and pulled out a tightly rolled up purple yoga mat and passed it to Louis who took it gratefully from him.

“I’ve never done yoga before,” Louis said as they left their room. He followed Harry down the stairs, bypassing the lifts completely. 

“It’s good,” Harry started. “Really relaxing and great for building muscle strength.”

“That I could use,” Louis commented, tucking his yoga mat under his arm a little more comfortably. “I used to play a lot of footie back home.”

“So you probably have a lot of lower body strength, then?” Harry questioned, turning his head to look at Louis while they walked.

“Yeah,” Louis replied. “We used to have to run all kinds of drills. It was brutal but it was worth it every game that we won.”

Harry turned a corner and threw a look over his shoulder at Louis. “I would’ve loved to see you play.” 

“I don’t think we were _that_ good,” Louis replied. “The other teams were just rubbish.”

“I think you’re that good,” Harry said. “I’ve seen you playing with Niall and Liam – you’re talented.”

Louis flushed a little and quickly controlled his powers to stop himself from turning invisible in front of Harry again. After the last time he did it when they had been trying on their X-Men suits, Louis had fought hard to control his sporadic invisibility bursts around Harry. So far it had worked but he knew it would happen again sooner or later. 

“Thanks,” Louis said. They fell silent, walking in step with each other the rest of the way to a work out room that was empty, save Liam, who was lighting candles with his finger. He glanced up at them as they entered and nodded to them.

“Harry likes candles when doing yoga,” Liam explained as he set down a candle on the far side of the room. “They’re just vanilla but they’re pretty relaxing.”

“Told you they were!” Harry exclaimed cheerfully. “Liam always says he doesn’t like my candles but I knew he secretly did.”

Liam rolled his eyes fondly and Louis bit back a grin. He rolled out his mat next to the two that were already rolled out on the floor and kicked off his shoes. He peeled off his socks when he saw that both Harry and Liam had bare feet as well. He followed the others to the mats and a moment later, soft music filled the room. 

“Since Cal is still away,” Harry started. “I’ll guide you through the steps. Just listen to my voice and you’ll be fine. We’ll go slow for you.”

“Alright,” Louis agreed. He positioned himself as Harry said and followed the instructions of each movement.

As they did move after move, Louis felt his body begin to relax. His mind was focused solely on Harry’s soothing voice as he instructed which way to move next. The positions weren’t as hard as Louis thought they were going to be, but Harry did say that they would go slow for him. He wondered just how complicated the moves could get and if Harry could do many of them.

He promptly fell over as he thought a little too hard about some of the moves he was sure that Harry could do.

Harry glanced over at him. “You alright?” he asked, reaching over to help Louis back up onto his knees.

“Yeah,” Louis replied. “Just lost my balance.”

Harry nodded and his soft voice filled Louis’ ears again as he spoke out the next set of instructions. Louis kept his mind firmly away from thoughts of Harry’s flexibility in relation to anything sexual and focused on the movements. 

It looked like Liam was an old pro, like Harry, Louis noted as Liam moved seamlessly into each position, holding it for the desired amount of time before moving into the next one. He was wearing a shirt this time, thankfully, Louis thought. He didn’t want to have to be faced with _two_ impossibly good looking, shirtless and sweaty guys while doing yoga. He was glad that Niall and Zayn weren’t with them – Louis wasn’t sure he’d survive that. 

“And breathe in,” Harry said. Louis automatically inhaled and held it until Harry said to breathe out. “Now we finish with the child’s pose.”

Louis glanced at Harry and Liam who folded themselves neatly and rested their foreheads on the mat, their entire bodies relaxing in unison. Louis copied the movement and as he settled into the position, he realised just how easy it would be to fall asleep like he was. He was certain that he’d get a leg cramp at some point but he understood how someone could fall asleep in that position.

The music stopped and Louis looked up. Liam stood and walked over to the CD player and switched off the music. Louis rolled onto his back and looked up at his friends upside down. 

“That was surprisingly relaxing.”

Harry beamed at him as he squatted to roll up his mat. “Yoga is the best.”

Liam nodded. “It’s really good for relaxing and muscle toning,” he said. “You should join us every time we do yoga. Cal is a great teacher.”

“Yeah, I might,” Louis said, trying to focus on Liam as best as he could from the angle his body was in. “When does Cal come back?”

“Not sure,” Harry replied. “His daughter is sick so he’s gone back home to America to be with his family.”

“Oh.” Louis fell silent. He felt bad for Cal, despite not knowing him. He hated whenever anyone he knew was sick, especially children. “That sucks.”

“It does,” Harry agreed. “Um. Liam and I usually do yoga on Sunday nights and whenever else we feel like we need to relax. Do you want us to tell you so you can come along if we do it on a day that isn’t Sunday?”

Louis sat up, swinging his legs underneath him. “Yeah, I’d love you to.”

Harry smiled at him. “Great,” he said. 

Louis rolled up his mat and stood, tucking it under his arm. He watched Liam extinguish the candles and put them into a tall, lockable cupboard that Louis hadn’t noticed when he came into the room. 

“We put our mats in here,” Harry said. “You can keep yours in here, too.”

“You mean your spare mat?” Louis offered, putting it into the cupboard next to Harry’s and Liam’s mats. 

“It’s yours now,” Harry replied easily. 

Louis felt his stomach twist pleasantly and tried not to think too hard about exactly what that implied and what he actually wanted it to imply.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four  
 _Louis_  


Invisibility could be pretty awesome, Louis discovered. His control over his powers was finally growing stronger. He could will himself invisible and visible again rather than waiting for the invisibility to wear off. During their training, Louis had been concentrating on remaining invisible while _inside_ his force field. With the amount of energy it took for him to keep both the invisibility and the force field up, he couldn’t last longer than eight minutes at a push. It was hard work and he often felt exhausted afterwards but the longer he could hold it, the better he knew it would be for him. He needed to strengthen his powers and be able to call them out at will, to control them. He couldn’t let his powers control him anymore, Nick had taught him that much. Despite Nick’s innate dislike for Louis, he had proved helpful when guiding Louis through learning to control and harness his powers. He had told Louis that his powers would undoubtedly grow and develop as he did. Nick had told him about ex-students of the school whose powers had grown exponentially and still retained complete control over them.

Louis would be lying if he didn’t admit that that thought scared him. He didn’t want to think about how much his powers _could_ grow, especially not when he wanted to concentrate on controlling the powers that he already had. 

Nick had instructed Louis to practice his invisibility outside of the classroom, do normal tasks while being invisible to see if he could keep the level of concentration up while moving about. 

Which is how Louis came to find himself walking around the mansion while completely invisible. He had already passed the five minute mark, which he was quite proud of. He had managed to trip Nick up in a corridor downstairs and Nick had splashed coffee all over his pristine white shirt. Louis had stuffed his fist into his mouth to stop from laughing. He didn’t want Nick to know that it was him, not thin air, that he had tripped over. He didn’t want to get detention because of it. 

Louis wandered down the staircase towards the common rooms, passing by a group of girls who were all studying together. He leaned in close and blew a puff of air on the back of one of their necks. The girl’s hand shot up and she looked, wide eyed, around the room, searching for the source of the burst of air. 

He left before they could sense that he was there. Louis walked towards the couches and televisions. Liam and Zayn were sitting next to each other, pressed impossibly close together, as they played FIFA. Louis perched on the arm of the chair, far enough away that they wouldn’t be distracted by him sitting down. He watched the game and kept his emotions in check when Liam’s player scored a goal. It had been a spectacular move and Louis made a mental note to play against Liam the next time they both were free. 

Liam paused the game after a moment and turned to Zayn. 

“Would you like a drink?” Liam asked. Zayn’s mouth opened a little like he was about to reply but he just nodded in response. Liam got up off the couch and Louis kept his gaze fixed on Zayn as Zayn watched Liam walk away. He smirked to himself as he realised that Zayn had a crush on Liam. He wondered how he hadn’t noticed it before. He made a note to tease Zayn about it at a later date.

Zayn fiddled with the controller in his lap and he quickly stood when Liam came back into the room, carrying two cans of coke with him. Liam passed one to Zayn and Zayn gave him a smile that was so sweet, so innocently beautiful that Louis suddenly felt like he was intruding on a private moment. 

He got up and wandered around some more, checking his hands every now and then to make sure that he was still invisible. It was a little boring being invisible by himself, Louis decided as he walked outside. He took in the cloudless sky, the sun shining brightly above him.

There were students littered all across the grass, books with them, doing their homework, or practicing their abilities. Others were just having fun. A group of younger boys were playing football and Louis grinned to himself as he entered the game unknowingly. He took the ball from one of the players, who protested loudly about someone using their powers during the game, and he booted it towards the goal at the other end of the pitch. He grinned as it sailed straight into the net passed the goal keeper. 

The boys all started bickering over whether that counted or not as Louis walked away. He could get used to this invisibility thing, he thought. Louis headed back inside the mansion, wondering where Niall and Harry were and how much he could get away with annoying them while invisible. 

Louis found Niall easily. He was chatting up a girl a year younger than them who had a pretty face and lovely golden brown hair. She was giggling at something that Niall was saying as they played a game of chess. Louis had no idea that Niall knew how to play chess, so he sat across from them, watching for a few long moments. Niall had an amazing way of making everyone around him really happy. Louis knew it wasn’t a mutant ability but a pretty special part of Niall’s personality. He was like Harry in that sense, Louis realised. They both had a certain level of charm about them that let people feel at ease around them and let them open up. 

“Check,” Niall said sounding rather smug as moved his piece across the board. The girl he was playing with smirked at him and moved her piece as well.

“Checkmate,” she responded. Niall gaped at her before staring down at the board. He groaned and flopped back in his seat hard.

“I can’t believe I didn’t see that,” Niall said but he didn’t sound too upset, Louis noted. 

The girl reached across the gap between them and patted Niall’s hand gently. Louis figured it was time that he left them to it as well and he stood up as silently as possible and left the room. He wondered if Niall would teach him how to play chess. Louis didn’t usually have a lot of patience for games like that but he thought it would be nice to share other things with Niall that weren’t just a love of food and football. 

Louis aimlessly wandered around the mansion, not really looking for anything in particular to do. He was lost in his own thoughts as he walked, not really taking in his surroundings.

It wasn’t until he heard a low, soothing and familiar voice that Louis stopped. He looked around and realised that he was outside some of the bedrooms on the lower levels. He took a few steps forwards and saw an open door. He realised that the voices were coming from there and he decided to take a peek. He faltered as he came to the door way, realising that Harry was sitting on one of the beds in the room. There was a younger girl tucked up in his arms. It looked a little awkward but Louis could tell, even from where he was standing, that the girl had been crying. It felt intrusive and Louis took a step backwards. The girl’s head snapped up and her gaze fixed on him. Louis held his breath and quickly glanced down at his hands. They were still invisible. There was no way that she could have seen him.

The girl turned to Harry and whispered something. Harry squeezed her shoulder and muttered something back to her. He leaned over to the bedside table and plucked a few tissues out of the box that was sitting on top of it. He gently wiped at the girl’s eyes and she gave him a grateful look in return. 

Louis watched as Harry kissed the girl’s forehead and tucked her into the bed. He switched off the lamp next to her bed and said something else that Louis couldn’t hear. Louis automatically took a step backwards as Harry came to the exit of the room. He held his breath again as Harry closed the door over and looked straight at him, a small smile playing on his lips. Louis knew that he was still invisible, so he wasn’t exactly sure how Harry could see him. He knew his powers weren’t faltering from over use and his force field came up between them, covering Louis completely. Harry’s gaze shifted and he walked down the hall without another glance in Louis’ direction.

Louis exhaled slowly, feeling himself deflate a little. He wasn’t sure what had happened there but it was odd.

Before he knew it, Louis had ended up in his bedroom. He sighed and was just about to flop on his bed when Niall came in. 

“Alright?” Louis asked as Niall all but collapsed onto Louis’ bed.

Niall grinned widely and Louis couldn’t help but wonder if anything had happened with the girl he had been playing chess with. “Yeah,” he replied. “Just played a game of chess with Ashley. She won.”

“Then why are you smiling?” Louis asked, leaning against his chest of drawers, looking down at Niall curiously. 

“Because she kissed me afterwards.”

Louis let out a coo of happiness and moved to sit on the bed next to Niall, poking him in the stomach as he did. “Was it good?”

Niall nodded and tucked his arms underneath his head. “Yeah, it was.” 

Louis took in Niall’s happy, smiling face and couldn’t help but smile back at him. Niall’s smile was infectious like that. “I was gonna go for a run, do you want to come?”

“Lou, I’d run circles around you, mate,” Niall replied, giving him a pointed look.

Louis reached over and twisted Niall’s nipple over his shirt. “No powers then,” he said while Niall batted his hand away and rubbed at his nipple. “I feel restless and yoga with Liam and Harry isn’t going to cut it.”

“So you _don’t_ want to see Harry in his yoga gear, then?” Niall asked, sitting up a little, resting his weight on his bent elbows.

Louis promptly turned invisible for a moment, his cheeks heating up as he did. He sighed when he realised what had happened, Niall laughing at him already. He screwed his eyes shut and concentrated on turning visible again.

“I’ll take that as a you do,” Niall said, getting up off the bed. 

“Does _everyone_ know about my crush on Harry?” Louis asked not bothering to get up just yet.

“Nah,” Niall replied. “Just Zayn and me. Liam is too oblivious to even his _own_ feelings and Harry is Harry, so he doesn’t know either.”

Louis wondered if that was meant to make him feel better. “Ugh, you’re annoying,” he said. “Go get changed and meet me back here in five, you Irish freak.”

Niall put his hand over his heart and shot Louis a feigned look of sadness. “You wound me, Louis, utterly wound me.”

Louis poked his tongue out in response and turned his back to Niall so he could get changed. He dressed quickly and was lacing up his trainers when Niall re-entered his bedroom, in running shorts and a tank top.

“Gah, your pale legs are blinding me!” Louis exclaimed, dramatically covering his eyes with his entire forearm. “They look like they’d glow in the dark.”

“They do,” Niall said proudly. “C’mon, Tommo, let’s go running.”

Outside the sky was still cloudless, the sun shining brightly over the entire grounds of the mansion. There were more students outside now than there were before when Louis had gone for his invisible walk. Louis looked around, taking in the students that had abandoned their school work in favour of doing something fun. More people were playing football with the group of boys from earlier and Louis couldn’t help but wonder just who had won that game that he had interfered with.

He and Niall reached the running track a few moments later and began to stretch out their muscles. Niall set down two large drink bottles onto the grass and Louis thanked him for remembering them, as Louis had forgotten all about water. 

Louis bent himself over, touching his toes with his fingers, stretching out the muscles in the backs of his legs. He took a deep breath as he straightened, lifting his arms over his head before letting them fall back to his sides.

“Now, no powers, Niall,” Louis reminded him with a pointed look.

Niall shot him a cheeky grin. “Sure,” he replied, walking over to the starting line. “On the count of three?”

Louis nodded. “One… Two… Three!”

They both sprinted off, feet pounding on the dirt ground. Louis could feel the muscles in his legs start to burn straight away from the rapid use but he ignored it. He knew it was stupid to have started on a sprint and that it would exhaust him quicker but he didn’t want Niall to have the upper hand.

“Blimey, you’re competitive, Tommo,” Niall said from next to him, his breathing laboured. Louis wondered just how much restraint Niall had to not just give in and use his super speed.

Louis grinned at him. “Thank you.”

Niall huffed and shook his head. They fell into a jog on their second lap. The burning in Louis’ legs had dulled to a slight heat but he urged himself to keep going. He still had excess energy that he needed to expel otherwise he knew he wouldn’t sleep at all and they had classes tomorrow. The constant slap of their feet on the ground soothed Louis, calming his mind into just focusing on moving one foot in front of the other. Niall next to him was breathing steadily and Louis mentally poked his tongue out at Niall for not panting like a dog like Louis himself was.

By the time they finished their third lap, Louis was ready to collapse. He all but fell onto the grass next to their water bottles. He panted heavily, unable to move his limbs at all. Niall sat down next to him and grinned. 

“Shut your face,” Louis said pre-emptively. 

Niall laughed and poked Louis in the side. “Feeling any better?”

“I want to die,” Louis replied dramatically. “I don’t know why I agreed to that. Kill me now.”

“You’re such a drama queen,” Niall said fondly. He popped the lid on one of the bottles and poured a small amount into Louis’ mouth, which Louis drank greedily. 

“I love you,” Louis said once Niall had finished giving him water.

“Of course you do,” Niall replied. “Unfortunately for you, though, you’re not my type.”

“Too manly?” Louis asked, lifting his hand to shield the glare of the sun so he could look at Niall properly.

Niall grinned widely. “Nah,” he replied. “Too into someone else.”

Louis smiled back at him. He was glad that Niall was interested in someone. He would have to make sure to meet Ashley and see what she was like for himself. If she made Niall smile like he was, then he figured she had to be pretty amazing. 

“Besides,” Niall continued. “I clearly don’t have curly enough hair or a deep, slow voice that you obviously like.”

Louis sat up with a groan and rested his palms flat on the cool grass, leaning his weight back on them. “Yeah, sorry, mate.”

Niall popped the lid on his own drink bottle and took a long sip before pulling one of his legs up to rest his arm on his knee. The sunlight made Niall’s blonde hair look like he had a halo around his head. “It’s really nice out here today, innit?” 

“Yeah,” Louis agreed. “It is.”

A pang of sadness shot through Louis, reminding him a of a time before his accident but he quickly shoved all thoughts of it aside. He couldn’t afford to focus on anything but the now. He didn’t want to get all sad and melancholy over something that he couldn’t change. Louis picked up his water bottle again and took another long drink from it, just for something to do. He stood up and grimaced as his muscles in his legs protested violently.

“Thanks for running with me,” Louis said as Niall stood as well.

Niall shrugged in response. “Running is good for the soul or something.”

Louis shook his head and nudged Niall’s shoulder with his own before starting to walk back towards the mansion. Niall babbled on about some footy game or another as they walked. Louis found it nice to just be able to listen and get lost in what Niall was saying. His enthusiasm for everything never ceased to amaze Louis. 

They headed for the showers together after grabbing their belongings from their room. Louis had grabbed his pyjamas. He didn’t care that it was still the middle of the afternoon, he wanted to curl up in his pyjamas on his bed and do nothing except maybe read for a while. He didn’t even care that he’d be going down to dinner in his pyjamas. They were super comfortable and as long as he didn’t slop any food onto himself, he couldn’t see a downside to it at all.

“I’m still hoping to start a footy team here,” Niall said from the shower cubical next to Louis’. “But no one seems interested.”

“It’s probably too much effort,” Louis replied as he poured shampoo into his open palm. “Everyone’s too focused on learning how to use their powers that all of their energy is going on that.”

Niall hummed audibly over the sound of Louis washing his hair. “I’d still like to do it.”

“Tell you what,” Louis said, scrunching his eyes together so he didn’t get shampoo running into them. “You and me can still train a few times a week and have a scrap match every now and then, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Niall agreed. “That’d be sick.”

Louis stepped under the spray to wash out his shampoo, feeling accomplished. At least he and Niall would be able to mess around with a football together. He could probably convince the other lads to as well and they could have proper little matches between the five of them. It wouldn’t be much but it would be fun at least. Other students might see them playing and decide to join in as well, which would probably please Niall a lot since he seemed so keen on the idea of a school football team.

After Louis had rinsed out the hair conditioner and washed himself thoroughly, he shut off the water. He stood for a few moments, water dripping onto the tiled floor with the other puddles near his feet. He reached for his towel and hastily dried off so he could get into his pyjamas. 

“We should have a movie night tonight,” Louis called out to Niall who was still showering. “Maybe watch Harry Potter since we didn’t get to last time.”

“Yeah, alright, sounds good,” Niall replied. 

“I’ll see you at dinner, Niall,” Louis said as he collected his things. “Don’t wank too long, your dick will prune.”

Niall’s laughter followed Louis out of the bathroom until the door shut behind him. Louis put his dirty clothes in his hamper and picked out a pair of fluffy socks from Harry’s sock drawer. He pulled them on and grabbed his book from his nightstand and made his way down to the common rooms. He curled up on one end of a loveseat and propped his book up on his thigh. 

He had just managed to read half a dozen pages when the couch dipped next to him. Wordlessly, an ear bud from a set of headphones came into Louis’ vision effectively distracting him from reading. Louis slipped his bookmark into his book and turned his head, seeing Harry’s hopeful face looking back at him. Louis took the ear bud from Harry and popped it into his ear. The music started a moment later and Louis nodded along to the sweet lyrics. He unfolded his legs and curled the other way. Harry shifted as well and laid his head to rest on Louis’ shoulder, the music filling the space between them. 

Harry’s index finger stroked the checked pattern of his pyjama trousers before stopping to just rest on the socks that Louis was wearing. Harry flicked the elastic once before snuggling into Louis a little more. 

When he realised that Harry wasn’t going to talk anymore, Louis picked his book back up and started to read again, letting the comfort of Harry pressed up against him soothe him in ways that he didn’t know he needed to be soothed. The puff of Harry’s breath across his neck should have been annoying but Louis felt it comforting. It was real and tangible, just like Harry was, and that put Louis’ mind at ease.

A long while later, Louis realised that Harry had fallen asleep on his shoulder. Liam entered the room and looked over at them with a fond smile. 

“How long’s he been out for?” Liam asked softly. 

“A while,” Louis replied. “I don’t have the heart to wake him but one of the other students said it’s dinner time.”

“Just wake him gently,” Liam said. “I’ve found that works.”

Louis nodded and without hesitating, he ran his hand through Harry’s soft curls before trailing a finger down Harry’s nose. “Harry,” he said softly, plucking the ear bud from Harry’s ear as well as his own. “Wake up, it’s dinner time.”

Harry snuffled and pressed his face into Louis’ neck. Liam just shook his head and pulled out his phone. Louis huffed and patted Harry’s cheek. “C’mon, Harry, you love food. We’re having shepherd’s pie.”

Harry’s eyes blinked open slowly and Louis’ breath hitched. Harry smiled slowly and lifted his head from Louis’ shoulder. He covered his mouth with his hand as he yawned and then stretched his arms above his head, his shirt riding up as he did so. Louis swallowed thickly, trying not to stare at the sliver of Harry’s skin that showed as his shirt moved upwards. 

“C’mon then,” Harry said, standing up. “We’re having shepherd’s pie for dinner!”

Louis blinked and stared at Harry incredulously. He stood as well and offered his hand out to Liam to help him stand as well before following them to the dining hall.

“Nice pyjamas, Lou,” Harry commented as they walked. 

“Thank you,” Louis replied easily. “They’re designer or something equally boring… Zayn picked them out.”

“Sounds like Zayn,” Liam said. “Though why he even bothers with pyjamas is beyond me; he sleeps naked.”

Louis raised an eyebrow at Liam, who promptly flushed brightly. “Really now?”

“I… Um.” Liam paused, flustered. “We share a room!”

Louis laughed loudly and slung his arm around Liam’s shoulders. “It’s alright, Li,” he said. 

They entered the dining hall a moment later and Louis lined up with the other boys to get their dinner. It smelled delicious and it made Louis’ stomach rumble in anticipation. Niall and Zayn were already sitting at their table when they got there, both of their plates completely filled with food. 

Louis made sure to sit across from Zayn so that Liam would have to sit next to him. Harry slid into the seat on Louis’ right and Louis smiled to himself as Liam took the only free seat left. He didn’t want to interfere with whatever may be going on between the two of them but it wouldn’t hurt to give them a gentle nudge in the right direction.

“Movie night tonight, lads,” Niall said through a mouthful of food. “We’re watching Harry Potter this time, Louis said so.”

Louis nodded. “I called it in the shower,” he replied easily. “Not my fault if you weren’t within hearing distance.”

Zayn sighed. “We’ve watched Harry Potter loads, though.”

“Three against one there, Zaynie,” Louis replied. “Four if Liam agrees to it as well.”

“Harry didn’t vote, though,” Zayn said hopefully.

Louis glanced over at Harry who had paused with his forkful of food half way to his mouth. “I want to watch Harry Potter,” he said. Zayn huffed and picked up his own fork again.

“Fine,” he muttered. “Next time we’re watching something _other_ than Harry Potter or _Love Actually_ , though.”

“Who watches _Love Actually_?” Louis wondered. Since he had been at the school, they hadn’t watched it once. He thought back and realised it hadn’t even been brought up as a suggestion before.

“Harry does,” Zayn replied before Harry had a chance to.

Louis bit his lip, half smiling as Harry shrugged. 

“We haven’t watched _Pretty Woman_ in a while, either,” Harry pointed out.

Louis grinned widely at that. He nudged Harry’s shoulder with his own and turned his head to face Harry a little better. “I’ll watch _Pretty Woman_ with you next time, if you want?” he offered.

Harry beamed at him. “Yeah?”

Louis nodded. “Yeah.”

Harry tuned back to his dinner, still smiling, so Louis did the same. He pointedly ignored the looks that he knew the other boys were probably giving him, keeping his gaze on his dinner instead. It was even more delicious than usual, Louis thought as he ate. He automatically moved his hand out of the way when Harry’s fork came into view. Harry had a strange habit of eating off everyone’s plates at least once while they were having dinner. The other boys often got annoyed at it but Louis didn’t mind. He found it endearing that Harry wanted to have a bit of everyone else’s dinner, even if they were all having the exact same thing. He didn’t mind sharing with Harry at all and had told him the first time that Harry had done it to him during his first week at the school. The other boys had just rolled their eyes and let Harry pinch something from their plates but Louis found himself adding more things to his plate so that Harry could happily eat from it without worrying that he was annoying Louis for stealing too much food.

Once they were finished with their dinner, they all cleared their plates and headed for the common rooms again. Louis shared one of the larger couches with Niall and Harry, sitting in between them so they could both snuggle into him as he knew they liked to. He pressed his nose into Harry’s hair and slowly inhaled, letting Harry’s scent overwhelm him. His lips grazed the top of Harry’s head as Harry snuggled further into him. 

Louis turned his gaze to the television where Liam had set up _Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone_ for them to watch. 

Just after the students arrived at Hogwarts on the screen, Louis felt a hand slip into his own, lacing their fingers together. Louis turned his head to try and see Harry’s face but his head was ducked in such a way that he couldn’t see it at all. Louis squeezed Harry’s hand gently, smiling when Harry squeezed back. A short while later, Louis’ other hand was taken by Niall who copied Harry’s actions, lacing their fingers together. Louis didn’t bother questioning what was going on – he had been around these boys long enough to know that they all liked physical affection and often craved it. It wasn’t just for them, either, Louis loved the affection as much as they did. It was nice to just curl up with the boys whenever he wanted, to just have someone else _there_. 

Half way through the movie, Louis realised that both Niall and Harry had fallen asleep. He glanced between the two of them, both of their mouths parted a little, soft, warm breaths coming out, tickling his neck on either side. It should have bothered him but it didn’t, it was somewhat comforting and reminded him a little of home.

Louis forced his attention back to the television screen where there was a large troll trying to kill Harry, Hermione and Ron. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Liam and Zayn squashed together on the loveseat. Liam’s hand was in Zayn’s hair and Louis was pretty sure that Zayn was fast asleep as well. He smiled fondly at them, feeling an overwhelming amount of affection for the boys that had taken over his life.

The movie finished and Niall woke first with a yawn, disentangling his hand from Louis’ own. 

“D’you need a hand with Harry?” he asked, nodding to where Harry was still fast asleep on Louis’ shoulder. 

“Nah, it’s alright,” Louis replied. “I’ve got this, you go to bed.”

Niall nodded, yawning as he walked off. Liam had gently laid Zayn down on the couch to get up and turn the television and DVD player off. Louis carefully pulled his hand from Harry’s grasp, only for Harry to grip it tightly at the last moment.

“Haz,” Louis whispered. “C’mon, mate, it’s bed time.”

Harry made a noise, protesting, but cracked one eye open anyway. He looked up at Louis and smiled briefly before burying his face in the cushion where Louis had been sitting. 

“Hungry,” Harry muttered as he sat up. “I’m gonna get something from Niall’s room.”

Before Louis could respond, Harry had wandered out of the room. Louis shook his head and crossed the room to where Liam was trying to rouse Zayn. 

“We could try carrying him?” Louis suggested. Liam looked like he was contemplating it and he nodded. 

“If we can get him to sit up, it’ll be easier,” Liam said. Louis helped Liam move Zayn’s sleep heavy body into an upright position so they could get him off the couch.

“Fuck, Zayn, you weigh a tonne,” Louis grit out through his teeth as he and Liam picked Zayn up. 

Zayn chose that moment to wake up, blinking up at them through a glare on his face. “You’re no lightweight either, Tommo.”

Louis snorted and gripped Zayn tighter around the middle to keep him upright. Zayn regained his balance with Liam and Louis holding him before Louis let go. They said good night to each other and headed for their room, their arms still around each other’s waists. Louis smiled to himself and pushed the door open to his and Harry’s bedroom. 

Harry was already in Louis’ bed, much to Louis’ surprise. He was under the blankets, a packet of HobNob biscuits sitting in his lap and a steaming cup of something in his hand. Louis closed the door behind him and raised an eyebrow at Harry.

“And you’re in my bed, why?” he asked.

Harry smiled at him. “Because I have biscuits!”

“I don’t want crumbs in my bed, Harold,” Louis said petulantly. Harry’s smile faltered. 

“I’ll clean it out, I promise.”

“Alright,” Louis relented. He slipped into his bed next to Harry who immediately offered him the packet of biscuits. Louis pulled one out of the packet. “Did you get me a cup of tea, too?”

Harry grinned and reached over to Louis’ bedside table that was behind him and carefully passed over the mug of steaming tea. Louis closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. It was a smell he would always love, he thought as he took a sip. It burnt his tongue a little on the first sip but it tasted great. 

Louis looked over to see Harry dunking one of his biscuits into his mug and leaving it for a moment before quickly pulling it out and shoving it into his mouth. He caught Harry’s gaze and grinned.

“You got…” Louis gestured to Harry’s mouth where tea had dribbled out of the corner of it. Harry’s tongue came out of his mouth to lap at the spot and Louis laughed loudly. “You look like a dog, here.” He grabbed a tissue from his bedside table and wiped at Harry’s mouth. “Grot,” he said fondly.

Harry beamed at him and took another sip of his tea and pressed in closer to Louis.

“I see you’re wearing socks tonight,” Harry said slowly. 

Louis shot him a somewhat amused, challenging look. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Harry replied. His foot slid against Louis’ own underneath the covers and pressed against it firmly. “You can borrow my socks anytime, Lou.”

“Thanks, I will,” Louis said. 

“Can I ask you something?” 

Louis nodded. “Of course.”

Harry set down his mug and turned to face Louis fully. “I…” he paused as if trying to find the right words. “I know something happened… _before_. But I want you to know that I don’t want to know what happened until you’re ready to tell me. Or any of the other boys. We’re here for you anytime you want to share that, okay?” Louis nodded, feeling his heart beating hard in his chest as Harry spoke. “And whatever it is, we’re still going to love you because you’re Louis.”

Louis tore his gaze away from Harry’s face, unable to keep looking at him. He fiddled with the ceramic handle of his mug before lifting it to his mouth and taking another long sip. 

“That wasn’t a question, though,” Louis said after a few moments. 

“Hmm,” Harry started. “I guess you’re right.”

Louis set his empty mug down on the ground so it was out of the way and he settled further in the bed. “Get those crumbs out of my bed, Styles. I’m going to wake up with birds in here thinking I’m bloody Snow White feeding them.”

Harry laughed and got out of the bed to dust the crumbs away and put the packet of biscuits on his side of the room. The bed was strangely cold without Harry in it. He was delighted when Harry slid back under the covers next to him and pressed in close. Their knees knocked together and Louis almost fell out of the bed before he quickly grabbed Harry’s arm to stop himself from falling. Louis huffed and slotted one of his knees between Harry’s own and wriggled to get more comfortable. 

“There, you bed hog,” Louis said fondly. Harry’s arm slipped around Louis’ back and he stroked down Louis’ spine with his broad, warm hand. 

“Can I tell you about my sister?” Harry asked. Louis nodded.

“I’d love you to,” he replied. He settled his head on Harry’s shoulder and listened as Harry recounted the story of when he first came into his powers and Gemma had laughed at him. 

Listening to Harry was comforting. It was obvious from the way that Harry talked that he and his sister were rather close and they still stayed in contact with each other as much as possible, despite Harry being so far away. Gemma had visited the school a few times when she had time off and Harry proudly recounted the tale, telling Louis in detail how Gemma had reacted. Louis could tell that Gemma’s opinion was important to Harry. 

“Mum got engaged a few months ago,” Harry said, continuing his stories about his family.

“Yeah, who to?” Louis wondered.

“My dad.” Louis shot him a confused look and Harry gently squeezed Louis to him a little before responding. “Mum’s been with Robin since I was a kid. Gemma and I both have the same biological father but he and mum split up shortly after I was born,” he explained. “Robin proposed on their anniversary. We were all home and mum cried she was so happy.”

“That’s beautiful,” Louis replied softly. He had seen photos of Harry’s mum and knew she was going to make a gorgeous bride on her wedding day.

Louis yawned, feeling suddenly tired. He knew it was late but he hadn’t felt too sleepy until that moment. He was warm, comfortable and felt more relaxed than he had in a long time, being curled up in Harry’s arms like he was. 

“Maybe you could come with me?” Harry asked after a while, his voice barely a whisper.

Louis blinked sleepily up at Harry. “Hmm?” 

“To the wedding,” Harry said. Louis nodded, dropping his head back to Harry’s chest. 

“Yeah, of course,” Louis mumbled in response. “I’d love to.”

“I can’t wait for you to meet mum and Gem,” Harry said, stroking his hand down Louis’ back again underneath the covers. “They’re going to love you as much as I do.”

Louis fell asleep before he could even think of what that meant.

~*~

“Hey, Lou. Alright?”

Louis looked up to see Harry approaching him in the queue in the dining hall to get their lunch. 

“Yeah, you alright?” Louis returned with a nod. Harry smiled back. 

“Yeah,” he replied. “I was thinking of going out this weekend. Been a bit too cooped up in here.”

“Where were you thinking of going?” Louis asked as he piled his plate with food, feeling particularly ravenous and adding extras for Harry to eat as well. Harry piled his own plate with food and they both grabbed a bottle of water each to go with their lunch. 

“Not sure,” Harry said, balancing his plate in his hand precariously. “D’you want to go to the movies with me maybe?”

“Yeah, I’d love to,” Louis replied as they approached their table where the other boys were sitting already. 

“Love to what?” Niall asked.

“Go to the movies this weekend,” Louis replied. “We should all go out, it’ll be fun.”

“I’m in,” Niall agreed immediately. “I haven’t been out in ages.”

“Yeah, I’m in too,” Zayn added. “Li?”

Liam looked between them all and nodded. “Sure. I’m in.”

Louis grinned. “Awesome,” he said. “We can make a night of it. Maybe watch a few movies and see how long it takes us to get kicked out.”

“Knowing you it won’t take long,” Niall teased.

“How very dare you,” Louis commented, poking Niall with the end of his fork. “I am deeply offended.”

“Sure you are, Lou,” Niall said.

Louis pouted and turned back to his own lunch. He took a few bites and looked over at Harry who was oddly quiet. Louis silently pushed his plate towards Harry, offering some of his lunch to him. Harry shot him a half-grin and stabbed at a potato on Louis’ plate with his fork before popping it into his mouth. Louis shifted so that his knee was pressing against Harry’s own underneath the table. 

Since they had fallen asleep together at the weekend, Louis felt like he had Harry had somehow managed to get closer. He hadn’t thought it was possible but every time Louis was alone, even for a moment, Harry was there seconds later, his bright smile filling Harry’s vision and his presence comforting Louis in ways that he didn’t know that he needed to be comforted. Even though it had only been a few days, they had cuddled (for lack of a better word) on one of their beds until they just couldn’t keep their eyes open any longer and separated to sleep. 

It was colder at night without Harry wrapped around him. It wasn’t helping his crush at all but Louis figured he could push his romantic feelings aside for Harry in favour of being as close to him as he was. Harry was a very affectionate and physical person, Louis knew that, and if Harry happened to turn his physical attention to him, then Louis didn’t mind at all. He could be Harry’s human teddy bear for as long as he needed.

Harry’s foot tapped against Louis’ own underneath the table and Louis looked up at Harry with a questioning look on his face. They were still eating lunch and Louis didn’t want to leave yet but Harry was on his phone, grinning widely. 

Louis flicked his gaze to the other boys to see if they knew who Harry was talking to but they weren’t paying attention. 

“Who’s that?” Louis mouthed to Harry. 

“Here, talk.” Harry shoved his phone at Louis who took it, wide eyed. 

“What? No! I don’t want to talk!”

“It’s just Gemma, relax,” Harry said, picking up his fork again.

Louis tentatively put the phone to his ear. “Hello?”

“ _Louis, right? Nice to finally talk to you_.” Gemma had a sweet voice, Louis noted. Completely different from Harry’s, though, he realised.

“That’d be me,” Louis replied. “Harry’s told me a lot about you.”

“ _Same here_ ,” Gemma said. Louis gazed at Harry again who he could see was trying not to actively stare at him. He missed his mouth a few times with his fork and Louis tried not to laugh out loud. “ _How’s he been, anyway_?”

Louis’ attention snapped back to the phone conversation he was having. “He’s good. All curly hair and baby giraffe limbs. The usual.”

Gemma laughed through the phone and Louis could see the grin on Harry’s face as well. He nudged Harry’s knee with his own, grinning when Harry’s pressed back harder. 

“ _I’ve been trying to convince Harry to come home for a weekend,” Gemma said. “Do you think you could help me_?”

“Sure,” Louis agreed. “We’re all going out this weekend to the movies, maybe you could meet us? Or we could meet you beforehand? We could have lunch or dinner or something.”

“ _That’d be great_ ,” Gemma said. “ _Lunch works better for me; I tend to work a lot in the evenings_.”

“Alright,” Louis replied with a nod, despite the fact that she couldn’t see him. “Text Harry the details of where to meet you and I’ll make sure we’re there, even if I have to steal Zayn’s Porsche to make sure.”

“ _I will_ ,” Gemma said. “ _And Louis? Thanks for making my brother happy_.”

Before Louis could ask what she meant, Gemma said a quick good bye and had hung up. He blinked and stared at the phone for a moment before passing it over to Harry.

“You’re not taking my Porsche anywhere,” Zayn piped up.

Louis shot him a grin. “Zayn, I’ll have you know that I am an _excellent_ driver.”

“You tell me that now but when you call me and tell me that you’ve totalled my car, I’m not sure I’m going to believe you,” Zayn said.

Louis pouted at him. “But you’ve got so _many_ cars, Zayn, can I _please_ borrow one to take Harry to see his lovely sister on Saturday?” He stared at Zayn, pouting all the while until Zayn huffed.

“Fine,” he said. “But if you break it, you pay for it.”

“Sure!” Louis agreed. “I’ll just put it all on the credit card.”

Niall snorted from next to him. “He’s got you there, mate.”

Louis beamed at Zayn who just rolled his eyes and turned back to his lunch without commenting. Louis finished off his own lunch as well before following the others outside to enjoy the sunlight before they had to go into more lessons. 

Louis flopped down in the grass and declared that he wasn’t going to be moving at all until the bell went to indicate that lunch was over. Harry sat down next to him and Louis got himself comfortable, using Harry’s thigh as a pillow. He closed his eyes and let the noise from the others wash over him. It would only be too easy to fall asleep, he decided. The sun was warm and Louis wanted to soak up as much of it as he could. 

The other boys all sat around them as well and Louis listened to Niall and Liam bantering about something that he couldn’t be bothered paying attention to.

Harry’s hand stroked Louis’ hair off his forehead and Louis blinked up at him.

“Your sister sounds nice,” Louis said after a while. “She sounds _nothing_ like you, though, which was disappointing.”

Harry smiled. “I’ll be sure to tell her that.”

Louis reached up and swatted at Harry’s hand but it only resulted in their fingers lacing together and resting on Louis’ chest. Holding Harry’s hand was both exciting and nerve wracking for Louis. He knew it didn’t mean the same to Harry as it potentially could for himself, but it didn’t stop him from wanting to do it any chance he got. Harry’s hands were big and soft to the touch. They fit so easily in Louis’ own, even though they were significantly smaller than Harry’s. It was like everything else about them that contrasted nicely, Louis thought.

All too soon the bell sounded and Louis let out a groan. He didn’t want to leave the warmth of the sun beating down on him. 

“It’s going to rain soon anyway,” Zayn said, kicking Louis’ foot with his own as he walked passed. “So you’ll be glad you won’t get caught in it and ruin your hair.”

Louis poked his tongue out at Zayn and got up with the help of Harry. Harry kept a hold of his hand as they made their way to their training room and Louis’ stomach fluttered pleasantly when he didn’t let go until he absolutely had to.

~*~

Saturday arrived quickly, much to everyone’s happiness. The week had been long and tedious and shortly after they had spent time outside the other day, it had started to rain and had been raining for three days straight. There was still a light drizzle on the morning but Louis’ weather app on his phone indicated that it would be over by the time he and Harry were going to be driving to meet Gemma. Louis was nervous to meet Harry’s sister. He didn’t really know _why_ he was nervous but every time he thought about it, his stomach twisted and he flickered invisible for a few seconds. Thankfully each time it happened, no one had been around to witness it and Louis could just put it down to his over-active mind.

It felt like it was an important and rather big step in his and Harry’s relationship ( _friendship, or whatever it was called_ , his mind supplied) to be meeting one of the most important people in his life. All Louis really wanted was for Gemma to like him. 

Harry had stayed up later than Louis the night before to make a driving playlist. Louis thought it was stupidly endearing and he fell asleep listening to the sounds of Harry shuffling about in their room, humming songs under his breath. Louis looked over at Harry who was still sleeping soundly in his bed, the covers pulled up to his chin. He looked impossibly young, with tufts of his hair poking out at the top. Louis didn’t want to disturb him but they still had to have breakfast before they left the mansion. 

Louis crossed the room and gently carded his fingers through Harry’s hair. Even in his sleep, Harry pressed into the touch. He scratched across Harry’s scalp and then ran his index finger down Harry’s nose. “Wakey, wakey, sleeping beauty,” he whispered. 

Harry snuffled and buried his face deeper into his pillow. “S’tired,” he muttered, his voice thick with sleep. Louis’ stomach flipped pleasantly at the sound. 

“C’mon, Harry,” Louis said. “We’re meeting Gemma today.”

Harry’s eyes opened and a slow, sleepy smile spread across his face. “That’s right,” he said. “Alright, I’m up.” He pushed the quilt back and Louis swallowed thickly as Harry’s naked torso came into view. He was all pale chest and non-defined lines. It was utterly perfect, in Louis’ opinion. Louis tore his gaze away and crossed back over to his side of the room to pull on his pair of Vans, forgoing socks, as per usual. 

“I’m just going to make some tea,” Louis said as he left the room. He headed down to their floor’s kitchen and filed the kettle with enough water to fill two travel mugs of tea with them. Harry had baked muffins the night before so they would have snacks to eat on the drive and Louis plucked one from the container he’d set aside to munch while the kettle was boiling. 

Liam wandered into the kitchen a moment later and Louis wordlessly offered him a bran muffin. 

“Thanks,” Liam said, peeling back the casing before taking a bite. 

“You sure you don’t want to come with us this morning?” Louis offered and Liam shook his head. Louis took another bite of his muffin as he watched Liam potter around the kitchen to prepare his own cup of coffee. 

“Better not,” Liam replied. “If I don’t stay here, there’s no way Niall and Zayn will even bother to get up to head out and they’ll miss the movie completely. And Niall has been saying all week how much he’s looking forward to getting out for the day.”

“Alright,” Louis said. The kettle finished boiling and Louis poured the hot water into the two travel mugs, the tea bags bouncing in the water once he had stopped. He stirred in the sugar with a teaspoon into Harry’s and added a little bit of milk to both mugs. “Oh, do you have the keys with you?”

Liam nodded and reached into his pocket to pull out a set of keys. “You’ve got the Porsche,” he said and Louis grinned widely, taking the keys from Liam’s outstretched hand. “Be safe, Lou. If anything happens to that car, Zayn will probably cry for a week and will have his own personal storm cloud following him. Literally.”

Louis snorted, pocketing the keys. “I’ll be safe, I promise.”

“Good.” Liam finished off his muffin and threw the wrapper in the bin along with Louis’ that he had left on the countertop. “We’ll be taking the Range Rover and we’ll meet you this afternoon, okay?”

“Yes, _dad_ ,” Louis teased, rolling his eyes affectionately. “We’ve both got our phones and I know Zayn has tracking systems on his cars _and_ our phones, you won’t lose us.”

“I know, I know,” Liam said, taking a long sip of his coffee. “I just worry.”

“Believe me, we know,” Louis deadpanned. He snapped the lids onto the travel mugs and set them next to the container of muffins. “Stress less, Li! Live it up, have fun. This is the only life you get and it’s not going to have fun on its own.”

Liam let out a breath. “Alright. We’ll see you two this afternoon. Have fun with Gemma, she’s a sweetheart.”

Louis closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around Liam’s shoulders in a tight hug, which Liam returned, squeezing his arms around Louis’ middle. His arms certainly felt as big and strong as always and it made Louis feel safe. Even though Liam was younger than him, it felt good to have someone looking out for him. It was different for Louis but it was necessary at times. 

“Alright,” Louis said, breaking their hug. “Have fun waking Zayn.” He threw a wink over his shoulder as he left the kitchen with the container of muffins and the two travel mugs of tea. He made his way back to his and Harry’s room to see Harry sitting on the bed, slipping his feet into a pair of worn brown boots. “I come baring gifts!” Harry looked up at him and grinned widely. Louis handed over one of the mugs and set his own down on Harry’s bedside table so he could open the container of muffins to pass one to Harry.”

“I love you,” Harry said as he bit into his muffin, moaning around it. 

“You’re the one who made them,” Louis replied. He pointedly ignored the way his entire body tingled at those three words. “Eat up because then we have to leave if we want to get there on time.”

“I know, I’m coming,” Harry said. He stuffed the rest of the muffin into his mouth and Louis’ eyes widened at the sight. He coughed to clear his throat and picked up his wallet, double checking that his credit card was still in there. He crossed back over to Harry’s side of the room and picked up his travel mug to take a sip of his tea. 

“Ready?” Louis asked, snapping the lid back onto the muffin container.

“Almost,” Harry said. “I just need to grab something.”

Louis checked the time on his phone before slipping it into his pocket. He looked over to see Harry’s arse sticking up in the air as he reached under his bed for something. Louis looked on, amused and when Harry let out a triumphant sound, pulling out a bag from underneath the bed, Louis raised an eyebrow in his direction.

Harry stood and dusted himself off. “It’s for Gemma,” he said, his cheeks tinged with red.

“Alright,” Louis said easily. “Now can we go?”

Harry nodded and they left their room together. They reached the garage where all of the cars were parked and Louis easily found Zayn’s Porsche. He clicked the button to unlock the car and slipped into the driver’s seat.

“I wish I knew how to drive,” Harry commented as he did up his seatbelt. 

Louis looked over at Harry as he started the car. “I’ll teach you,” he said. “Just not in this car, though but I’ll teach you, if you like?”

“Yeah?” Harry asked, a hopeful grin on his face.

“Yeah, of course,” Louis promised. He drove out of the garage and they left the mansion grounds. “You can put your music on, if you like. I know you were up late putting songs together.”

Harry reached into his pocket and pulled out a small iPod. He fiddled with some cords and the stereo while Louis drove. He would have to remember to tell Zayn how amazing it was to drive his Porsche. It drove like a dream.

Soon, music filled the car. It wasn’t anything that Louis recognised but Harry had such a broad taste in music that Louis probably wouldn’t recognise anything. 

“I created a few different playlists,” Harry explained. “Just in case you get bored of my music.”

“I won’t get bored,” Louis replied. “Whatever you play is fine by me.”

The drive was easy once they hit the open road. It was peaceful, Louis thought. He listened to Harry singing along to the songs and joined in whenever he recognised one that Harry had played him before. Harry had a wonderful voice, Louis thought, and he made sure to tell Harry at every opportunity that he could. He could listen to Harry singing the entire drive if Harry wanted to, he was that good.

After an hour of driving, Louis pulled into a petrol station to fill up the car and so they could have a little break. They were about half an hour away from meeting Gemma, if Louis’ calculations were anything to go by. The car modifications cut down the time by half, which Louis was thankful for; otherwise it would have taken them a lot longer to get to meet Gemma. 

Once the car was filled and both Harry and Louis had stretched their legs for a little while, they climbed back into the car and pulled back onto the motorway. Harry changed playlists for the remainder of the drive and Louis laughed happily when he heard the first beats of the _Grease_ soundtrack filling the car.

“Haz,” Louis said fondly. 

Harry just smiled and looked down at his hands. They both started to sing along to the songs, not stopping until they pulled up into a free parking spot near the café they were meeting Gemma in. Once Louis turned the engine off, his nerves returned. He took a few deep breaths just so that Harry wouldn’t suspect anything was up.

“Lou, you alright?” Harry asked, proving that he was far too perceptive for his own good.

“Yeah, of course I am,” Louis replied easily. He got out of the car and locked it once Harry had as well.

“Gemma’s running a few minutes late, she got off at the wrong stop,” Harry said, glancing down at his phone. “We may as well go in and order something to drink at least.”

Louis nodded and followed Harry inside. It was simple but beautifully decorated, Louis thought as he was led to an empty corner booth by Harry, who had obviously been there before. Louis sat down next to Harry and leaned into Harry a little to see the menu that he had in his hands. 

“Want to split a milkshake?” Harry offered. 

“As long as it’s not banana, sure,” Louis replied and Harry bit his lip. “You wanted banana, didn’t you?”

“It’s alright, I’ll get banana later,” Harry said. “Let’s get chocolate; their chocolate shakes here are amazing.”

“Okay,” Louis agreed. Harry stood up to go order their drinks and Louis turned his attention back to the menu, wondering what would be good to have for lunch. He read over a few selections, torn between choosing when he figured he’d just see what Harry wanted and split it like they usually did.

A foot brushed against Louis’ own as someone slid into the booth opposite him and he looked up, thinking it was Harry. He saw a pretty girl with dark coloured hair staring back at him. 

“Hey, I’m Gemma.”

Louis promptly turned invisible. “Shit.”

“Hey, where’d Louis go?” Harry asked as he approached their booth, holding two milkshakes in his hands. 

“I’m here, Harry,” Louis said softly. 

“Lou!” Harry’s eyes widened and he sat down next to Louis’ invisible body. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“He did that when he saw me,” Gemma commented. 

“Oh,” Harry said, a fond look crossing his face. “Lou, it’s alright. Just relax and turn back, okay?”

Louis nodded but he knew it was pointless because they couldn’t see him. He glanced around the café to make sure that no one was looking at him and focused all of his energy on turning visible again. He glanced down at his hands to see that they were in fact visible and let out a sigh of relief. 

Underneath the table, Harry’s hand found Louis’ thigh and he squeezed it gently. “Here,” he said. “Have something to drink.”

The milkshake was slid across the table until it bumped against Louis’ fingers. He gripped it and popped one of the two straws into his mouth, taking a long sip. 

“Wow, that is delicious,” he said, surprised. Harry beamed at him and Louis slid the glass back over to Harry who took his own sip. 

“How was the drive over?” Gemma asked, twirling the straw in her own milkshake before taking a sip. 

“It was good,” Harry replied, sliding the glass back to Louis. “Louis’ gonna teach me how to drive.”

Gemma glanced at Louis briefly. “About time you learnt how, H.”

Louis took a long sip of the milkshake before passing it back. Harry’s hand gently squeezed his thigh again under the table and Louis pressed his foot against Harry’s in response. Gemma seemed nice so far, he thought. It was interesting to watch Harry interact with his sister. They had a playful banter that Louis could see was based on pure affection for each other. They included him in their conversation as well and Gemma laughed every time Louis came out with some witty comment or another. Louis decided that he liked Gemma a lot. Especially when she laughed at his stupid jokes. 

“Are we having lunch here?” Gemma asked after a while. Their milkshakes had long since been finished and at the mention of food, Louis felt his stomach rumble. 

“Yeah, we should,” Harry said. “They do a good burger here.”

Harry reached across for the menus that Louis had pushed aside and he set one between them and passed the other to Gemma. 

“Want to split a pizza?” Louis asked as he looked through the menu. “We could get half meat lovers and half Hawaiian.”

“Yeah, that looks good,” Harry agreed. He waited for Gemma to decide what she wanted before he got up to place their order.

“Invisibility must be a cool power to have,” Gemma started. 

“Yeah, it’s alright,” Louis replied. “I’m still getting a handle on it.”

Gemma grinned. “I could tell,” she said. “Does that happen often? Turning invisible like that?”

“Not as often as it used to,” Louis replied. “I had no idea that I _could_ turn invisible until I met Harry. I saw him and turned invisible. Since then it’s only been a certain times.” He didn’t want to divulge that it was mostly when he was nervous or when startled because it felt a little too personal to share. 

“Harry said you can create force fields, too?” 

Louis nodded. “Yeah, I can.”

“What’s that like?”

“Different,” Louis replied. “I… Um… That power I had before starting at Xavier’s School.” He paused and slipped his hands under the table to grip at his knees for something to do with his hands. “Apparently I have some kind of shield around my mind as well. Like, it’s from my force field but Nick said it’s near on impossible for anyone to read my mind or anything like that. Which is good. Because my mind isn’t an exciting thing to read at all.”

Gemma cocked her head and fixed him with a stare. “I can’t read your mind, you know,” she said. 

“I know,” Louis said quickly. “Harry told me you weren’t like us.”

“He talks about you a lot, you know.”

Louis froze in his seat. “…About what?” 

Gemma shrugged and pushed her dark hair over her shoulder. “Mostly that you’re the best room mate he’s ever had.”

“Well, that’s very true,” Louis replied. “I’m just that entertaining.”

“It’s nice to know that H has someone who gets him sharing a room with him,” Gemma continued. “Some of the other class fours haven’t been that… _accommodating_.”

Louis crinkled his nose at that. He was glad that he and Harry were room mates. They had a lot of fun together and Louis didn’t really want to share him with anyone else.

“Where is he, anyway?” Louis asked. He spotted Harry still placing their order but the waitress taking it was very obviously flirting with Harry if the way her chest was pushed out in his direction was any indication. Louis frowned and gripped the edge of the table when he saw Harry’s head tip back as he laughed. 

“Louis?”

Louis looked over at Gemma who had a confused look on her face. 

“Your… I think your force field was coming out then,” she said and Louis quickly let go of the table, not meeting her eye again.

“I’m just going to the loo,” Louis said, standing up. He was thankful that the toilets were situated near their end of the café rather than across it where Harry was. 

He closed the door firmly behind him and leaned over the sink. He splashed some water on his face and forced himself to calm down. It wouldn’t do him or Harry or anyone any good if his powers started reacting because of something as stupid as Harry talking – _flirting_ – with a waitress. Louis patted his face dry with some paper towel and ran his fingers through his fringe, pushing it off to the side again. He looked at his reflection in the mirror and shook his head. 

“Get a grip, Tommo,” he whispered. 

When he left the toilets, Harry was sitting back at their booth, chatting with his sister. They were both smiling and suddenly Louis felt stupid for reacting the way he did. He slipped into the space next to Harry and gave him a small smile.

“Alright, Lou?” he asked softly.

“Yeah, of course,” Louis replied. He chanced a glance at Gemma who just quirked her lips in a small smile. 

“I was just telling Gem that you’re really coming into your abilities,” Harry said. “And how much control you have over them now, even after only being at the school for this long.”

“I’m getting there but I’m no you,” Louis replied. “Harry has amazing control over his abilities; I’ve never seen anything like it. Well, until a couple of months ago, I didn’t have a clue that I was a mutant, so…”

Harry’s hand found Louis’ under the table and he laced their fingers together. Louis felt his entire mind relax at the touch. “It’s fun training with the guys,” he said, turning his gaze to Gemma. “Niall has this thing for making animals with his metal marble and they’re all so lifelike.”

“How is my favourite Irish misfit?” Gemma asked.

“Still Irish,” Louis replied. “We’re trying to convince some of the other students to start a football team with us but no one seems interested.”

“I think Li is,” Harry said. “At least he told me that he wouldn’t mind playing if there was an actual team.”

“Maybe Niall can convince people to join and there will be,” Gemma offered. 

They traded stories about Niall, including the time that Harry spent a few weeks in Ireland with Niall during the summer after his first year at Xavier’s School. Harry had shared tales of the things that he and Niall had got up to in Ireland with Louis before when they would stay up late talking into the night.

Their food came a short while later and Louis stared down at the large pizza that had been placed on the table. It was bigger than Louis was expecting but he was hungry and he knew that Harry would steal one of the slices on his half as well. 

Gemma had ordered a burger with some fries and before she could even protest, Harry was pinching one off her plate to eat. He shot her a smile and she rolled her eyes at him in such a way that only exasperated siblings could manage. Louis took a bite of his pizza, feeling the cheese pulling off the other side. He quickly shoved as much of it into his mouth as he could, tongue flailing to curl around the loose strings. He picked up a napkin and wiped at his chin after his bite, feeling some of the cheese strings stuck there.

Before Louis could even take his second slice, Harry was taking one of Louis’ for himself, taking a large bite out of it. Louis grinned and threw him a wink before picking one of Harry’s to eat as well. 

“This pizza is delicious,” Louis said as he picked up a third slice. “I don’t think I’ve ever had pizza so amazing in my entire life.”

Harry nodded his agreement. “It’s great,” he said between bites. 

Gemma ended up reaching across and taking a slice as well and Louis briefly wondered if they could order a pizza to take away as well for the movies that night. He quickly squashed that idea, though, as he knew Niall would want the entire thing once he saw they had it.

After they had finished eating, Louis leaned back into the back of the booth and put one hand on his stomach. 

“I don’t think I can move I’m that full,” he groaned.

Harry shifted so his head was resting on Louis’ shoulder. “Me too.”

Gemma just shook her head at them. “Amateurs,” she said fondly.

Louis didn’t even have the energy to think up a witty comeback so he just groaned in response. Harry seemed like he was about to fall asleep on Louis’ shoulder so Louis nudged him. 

“C’mon,” he said. “We’re supposed to be spending time with your sister, not sleeping.”

“But I want to sleep,” Harry said. “I’m full and I want to sleep.”

Louis poked Harry in his dimple. “C’mon, Haz, a walk will do us both good.”

Harry let out a noise of protest.

“It’s alright, Louis and I will go shopping without you,” Gemma said, downing the rest of her drink in one gulp. “You can go nap in the car.”

Harry let out another noise of protest and glared over at his sister. “Alright, c’mon, I’m ready then.”

Gemma grinned at him and they all left the café a few moments later. They left the car parked where it was in favour of walking around, finding shops to go into and have a browse. One of the first places they stopped was a music store and Louis would enter every music store on the planet if he got to see Harry’s face light up like that every single time. He immediately wandered off, leaving Louis and Gemma near the door.

“He’ll be in here for a while,” Gemma commented. “It’s best just to leave him to it.”

Louis nodded and he glanced over at Harry, who was rifling through a box of vinyl records already. “He does have a very broad taste in music.”

“He’s a wannabe hipster,” Gemma replied. 

“Not a hipster…” Gemma shot him a look. “Okay, he’s a little hipster.” They both grinned and Louis pulled out a CD that he thought would be good. He kept a hold of it as they kept browsing.

After Harry had chosen no less than six vinyls and four CDs, they left the store. Harry took Louis’ one album and put it in the bag with his own, carrying them for him. Louis bumped his shoulder against Harry’s in thanks. They walked into a clothing store next and Louis immediately went for the male’s selection, rifling through the racks to find something he liked. It didn’t take him long and soon he had a selection of shirts, trousers, jumpers and a few new sets of suspenders thrown over one arm. 

“Christ, Lou, do you have enough clothes?” Gemma asked when she crossed through the store to where he was looking through another rack.

“I like clothes,” Louis replied with a shrug. 

“He hates socks, though,” Harry commented as he headed for the changing room, his own arms piled with clothes. 

“You boys have more clothes than I do,” Gemma said. “It’s unfair, you know.”

“Choose something then, Gem!” Harry called out. “I’ll pay for it.”

“You mean Zayn’s dad will pay for it,” Gemma returned.

“Zayn’s dad?” Louis questioned. 

Gemma nodded. “The credit cards,” she started. “Zayn’s dad foots the bill for them every month. Didn’t you know?”

Louis slowly shook his head. “No,” he said slowly. “I had no idea.”

Harry stumbled out of the change room a moment later, a pair of trousers half way down his legs. “Gemma!” 

Gemma looked over at him and laughed. “I’m not helping you into your trousers again, Harry. Once was enough.”

“Gemma,” Harry said, his tone warning. “Louis doesn’t know.” 

Louis frowned. “I don’t know _what_?” he asked.

Harry bit his lip and hastily pulled up the trousers he was wearing. “About Zayn’s dad…”

Louis blinked at him and then looked to Gemma. “Well, is someone going to tell me?”

Harry and Gemma traded looks until Harry huffed at her.

“Zayn’s stepdad kicked Zayn out,” Gemma started. 

“What? What for?” Louis asked.

“After Zayn came into his abilities, Zayn’s stepdad didn’t take it too well. He was fine with it because of Zayn’s mum but after Zayn brought home a boy and was caught giving him a hand job in the living room, he was kicked out. Zayn’s stepdad told him that he would pay for anything that Zayn wanted but he wasn’t allowed back home ever again,” Gemma explained.

Louis’ mouth dropped open. “Shit,” he said. It explained a lot about Zayn’s behaviour, he thought. He couldn’t imagine what that must have been like to go through, especially since he knew that Zayn had been at the school for so long.

“Zayn doesn’t like to talk about it,” Harry added after a while. “He has his own place in London that he goes back to during the summer and he occasionally gets to see his sisters but as long as he doesn’t make contact first, then his stepdad keeps Zayn financially happy. It’s why he’s so happy to spend money on all of us. It pisses his stepdad off. Not that he’d really notice, he’s loaded, after all.”

“Wow,” Louis said. “Christ. Why didn’t he tell me?”

Gemma shrugged. “Some things are hard to share, you know?”

She gave Louis a pointed look and Louis immediately felt guilty. He really didn’t have a place to make comments like that when he kept things from the boys as well. They were all close but there were just some things that he wasn’t ready to share yet. Zayn was probably the same with him, especially seeing as Louis was the newcomer to their group.

“C’mon, let’s go,” Gemma said. “Harry, put your own trousers back on.”

Harry nodded and headed back to the change room to put his own clothes back on and he joined them a few moments later. They paid for their things with the credit cards Zayn had given them and left the store. 

“Sorry for putting my foot in it back there,” Gemma apologised. “I didn’t know that Zayn hadn’t told you. Harry said you were close.”

“We are,” Louis said. They started to walk back to where the car was parked. “It’s okay, I’ve been keeping things from him, too, so it’s not that big of a deal.”

Gemma nodded in understanding and once they reached the car, Louis popped the boot so they could put their bags in it. 

“I’ve gotta head back soon,” Gemma said as Louis closed the boot. “We should do something fun before I leave.”

Harry suddenly smiled. “There’s one of those old fashioned photo booths not far from here,” he said, sounding excited. “We should go take a bunch of crazy photos and print of lots of copies. You’ll have to give one to mum, too.”

They followed Harry down another street and came to a store that had the photo booth in the back. It was thankfully empty and the three of them climbed into the tiny booth. Harry was practically in Louis’ lap the entire time and they made several funny faces every time the shutter went off to take a photo. Louis’ face started to hurt from laughing so hard every time Harry puffed out his cheeks and crossed his eyes at the camera. Gemma laughed loudly through a lot of it and Louis was sure that most of the photos of her would be with her mouth open, laughing. Louis poked Harry in the side and grinned when Harry wriggled in his lap, trying to twist around to poke him back. Louis held onto him tightly though, and didn’t let him move. 

One of the last photos was of Harry biting at Louis’ ear and Louis trying to lean away but the further he leaned, the more he squashed Gemma, who shoved back at them both. Harry almost toppled out of the booth but Louis kept his arms around Harry so he didn’t.

“We should do at least _one_ nice one,” Louis said. “You know, for your mum.”

“We should,” Gemma agreed, smoothing back her hair.

Harry settled a little more on Louis’ lap, sitting slightly on the side so he could fit one of his arms around Louis’ back. Louis wrapped his arms loosely around Harry’s middle and smiled at the camera, waiting for it to go off. Harry’s fingers slipped in between his own again just as the camera’s shutter went off, all of them smiling brightly.

“I’ll get the photos!” Harry exclaimed, all but jumping off Louis’ lap to retrieve them. He pushed some buttons on the side of the booth and the other sets all printed again. 

Louis waited to be passed one of the strips and grinned when he saw the photos. They were all in colour and looked great, he thought. Their silly faces looked hilarious with each photo that went on and Louis pointed out Gemma’s hair being the only part in one of the photos where she was being squashed.

Louis’ gaze dropped to the last photo of them all smiling and he could see Harry’s fingers in between his own. He smiled down at it and quickly decided that it was his favourite photo out of all of them.

“I don’t think your mum will want photos like this,” Louis said.

“She’ll love it,” Gemma replied. “This is her kids in their natural state of stupidity.”

“Well, better not give her that last one, then,” Louis said. “She might die of shock to see a normal looking photo of you both.”

“Nah, gotta keep her on her toes,” Gemma replied with a wink.

Louis laughed and he shook his head. They left the store together after Harry had purchased a bunch of small photo frames for each of them to put their photos into. 

“We’ll walk you to your bus stop,” Harry said as they wandered down the street. “Then we have to meet the boys soon.”

“Alright,” Gemma agreed. 

She led them through the streets and down to her bus stop. Louis watched fondly as Harry and Gemma hugged each other for a few long moments and he felt a pang of nostalgia before he shook it off. Harry pressed a kiss to her cheek and she swatted him playfully, moaning about little brothers being gross creatures which only served to make Harry smile more. 

“It was lovely meeting you, Louis,” Gemma said when she finally had extricated herself from Harry’s death grip.

“Likewise,” Louis returned with a smile. She stepped forwards and enveloped him in a hug. Her hair somehow made its way into his mouth and her perfume was a little too strong this close but Louis didn’t care. It had been a very long time since he had hugged anyone that was female. He tried to keep his emotions in check as she hugged him. It wouldn’t do him any good to suddenly turn invisible or produce a force field around so many people. 

“Thank you for being there for my brother,” she whispered into his ear before she pressed a kiss to his cheek. Louis nodded silently and they broke apart.

Gemma gave Harry one last hug and then stepped onto the bus that was steadily filling with other people. Gemma waved once she was inside and Harry enthusiastically waved back. Louis slipped his arm around Harry’s middle and held him close while he gave Gemma a wave as well. The bus pulled away from the road and disappeared a few moments later. 

Harry stayed watching after the bus until it had completely disappeared from view. Louis squeezed Harry’s hip to get his attention and Harry turned back to him and wrapped his arms around Louis in a tight hug. Louis huffed out a breath, not expecting the movement but he melted into Harry’s embrace anyway. His eyes fell shut of their own accord and he inhaled deeply, letting Harry’s scent wash over him. Harry always smelled nice, in his opinion, and it was nice to be this close to him. He could tell just from their afternoon that Harry and Gemma were quite close for siblings. Louis understood that. He was glad they were close, even though they were physically so far apart. 

“C’mon,” Louis said, pulling back to look at Harry. “Let’s go find the lads and watch a movie.”

Harry nodded and slipped his hand into Louis’ as they left to head back into the busy, people filled streets. Louis tried not to think too much about what all of this hand holding and excessive cuddling between them meant. He wanted it to mean more than it probably did, but he wasn’t sure where Harry stood with it all. Normally Louis would just bring it up with no worries about the consequences but he didn’t want to talk to Harry about it and scare him off. He didn’t want this closeness between them to end. Even if it wasn’t doing his crush on Harry any favours. 

A large part of him wanted to just sweep Harry into his arms and kiss him senseless but without knowing exactly how Harry felt, Louis knew that he couldn’t risk it. So he kept his feelings to himself because the trade-off of having Harry close was worth it. 

They found Niall, Liam and Zayn a short while later. All three boys were in a Starbucks drinking overpriced sugary coffee drinks that Louis turned his nose up at, complaining loudly that coffee would never be as good as tea.

“One day,” Harry started off slowly. “I’m going to buy you one of these coffees and you’re going to love it.”

“Doubtful, Harold,” Louis said as they sat down with their own drink orders. He took a sip of his tea and sighed. “Absolutely nothing on this planet could taste as good as a cup of tea does. It’s just not British to love coffee that much.”

Harry snorted and took a large sip of his coffee, getting a cream moustache from it. His tongue darted out and licked at his upper lip, swiping all of the cream away. Louis couldn’t tear his gaze away. There was still a streak of cream left that his tongue hadn’t reached and Louis wriggled in his seat.

“You don’t suit a moustache,” he said, passing Harry a napkin to wipe it off. Harry did, keeping his gaze on Louis the entire time and Louis purposefully turned himself so he was facing the other boys, giving them his undivided attention. “Have you decided what movie we’re seeing?”

“Hopefully an action movie of some kind,” Niall replied. “No offence mate, but I’m getting sick of Harry Potter and whatever other rom-coms Harry keeps in his room.”

Harry shrugged. “More for me.”

“Are we going to have tea before the movie?” Niall said. 

“Harry and I had lunch not too long ago, so I’m not hungry yet,” Louis replied. “But maybe in a couple of hours?”

Liam nodded. “That works for me, I’m not hungry yet. Plus, I want to see if I can get tickets for a footy game in a couple of weeks.”

“Oh, who’s playing?” Louis asked, intrigued. 

“Newcastle and Liverpool,” Liam replied. “It’ll be in Newcastle, too, so it won’t be that far to travel.”

“See if you can get me a ticket, too? I’d love to go,” Louis asked.

“Me too!” Niall added. “I haven’t been to a real footy match in _ages_.”

“Yeah, I will,” Liam said. “Harry? Zayn? Do you guys want to come too?”

“I’ll pass, Li,” Zayn said. “Though if we’re coming back out, I might book in to get another tattoo.”

“You have tattoos?” Louis asked before he realised what was coming out of his mouth.

“Yeah, a few,” Zayn replied. “I got one when we went out a few weeks ago.” He pushed the sleeve of his jumper up to reveal a yin yang symbol on his left wrist. Louis wondered how he could have missed that. 

“I’ll come with you,” Harry said. “I don’t fancy watching football with this lot.”

“Hey!” Niall protested. “Liam and I are _excellent_ to watch football with.”

Zayn snorted and he took a sip of his drink. “Sure.”

Louis blinked as Zayn and Niall began to banter. He turned to Harry. “Are they really that bad to watch footy with?” he asked softly, wondering what he was getting himself into.

Harry shrugged. “They have their good and bad days,” he replied. “They’re fun but loud.”

“Have you met me? I’m the king of loud,” Louis said. “I’m definitely in, Liam!”

Liam beamed and pulled out his phone. “I’ll make sure you’re on the list, too.” He tapped on the screen of his phone before putting it away again. “So if we’ve got a few more hours until the movie, what do you lads want to do?”

“We could go to an early screening and get tea afterwards?” Harry suggested, looking around at their group of friends who all nodded their agreement. 

A short while later, they were all queued up at the concession stand after getting their tickets for the first movie Niall picked off the list. It looked good enough that none of them had overly protested at it. Louis watched as Niall ordered two extra large buckets of popcorn and an extra large drink for himself as well as a packet of chocolate buttons.

“You know,” Louis started, leaning towards Harry a little in the queue. “If we order a packet of Maltesers, we can throw them at people.”

Harry grinned. “What a waste of good chocolate though, Lou,” he said, pressing a hand to Louis’ lower back. Louis hummed in response.

“Harry,” Niall said. “Would you be able to carry my drink for me? I don’t have enough hands.”

Louis snorted, taking in Niall’s innocent expression, a hopeful smile on his face. Harry, of course, said yes and Niall beamed at him. Louis stepped up to the counter next to Harry and ordered with him, making sure to get a jumbo packet of Maltesers, just to see Harry’s bemused smile. 

Once they were in the cinema, Louis dug his hand into the medium sized bucket of popcorn he and Harry had bought to share. He stuffed his mouth with a handful and shifted better in his seat. The previews for upcoming movies started to play and Louis barely paid any attention as Harry was bending over in his seat to do _something_.

“What are you doing?” Louis asked. 

Harry sat upright and flashed Louis a cheeky grin. “I was taking off my shoes.”

Louis blinked. “That’s a great idea,” he said. He slipped off his shoes and tucked them under the chair a little. He wriggled his toes happily and settled back into his chair just as the movie started to play.

He could hear Niall chewing popcorn loudly from two seats over and he was glad that Niall had chosen to sit next to Liam instead of next to Harry. Zayn was in the middle, in between Louis and Liam, silently watching the film, eating out of his own bucket of popcorn. 

“You know,” Louis whispered conspiratorially to Harry half an hour into the movie. “This would all be so much more believable if they had better special effects. And a woman that didn’t have such big boobs. Honestly, don’t they get in the _way_?”

Harry covered his mouth with his hand, biting back a laugh. “I think the point is to attract guys like Niall.”

Louis looked over his shoulder to where Harry was looking at Niall. Niall had a handful of popcorn raised half way to his mouth, frozen completely looking at the now naked breasts on the screen. Louis grinned. “You’re completely right,” he said. “All of those horny teenage boys who like boobs will _love_ this film.”

“It’s kind of boring,” Harry admitted. “I don’t mind action films but this has no plot at _all_.”

“Harold, how dare you,” Louis said, mock affronted. “There are _boobs_ on the screen – that in itself is a plot!”

Harry laughed loudly at that and a bunch of people shushed him. Louis giggled into his hand and leant into Harry a little more.

“I saw a poster for the new Sandra Bullock film,” Harry started. “Do you wanna sneak out and go see it?”

Louis bit his lip and looked between Harry and the screen. Once he saw that the woman was still topless, he knew his decision was made. “Yeah, let’s go.”

He whispered to Zayn that they were going to watch another film and got a grunt in response. They both quickly slipped their shoes back on and then darted out of the cinema.

Louis stopped them in the empty corridor. “Wait,” he said. “I don’t want to pay for _another_ film.” He took Harry’s hand and closed his eyes in concentration. When he opened them, both he and Harry were completely invisible. He grinned and tugged Harry’s hand. “This way.” Harry stumbled a few times, not used to the sensation of being invisible. They snuck into the cinema that the movie was playing in. The previews for the upcoming movies were still playing when they sat down in one of the back rows. 

“It’s so empty in here,” Louis commented, pulling the packet of Maltesers from out of his pocket where he had stuffed them. He dropped the packet into Harry’s lap and kicked off his shoes again before curling his feet up underneath him. 

“People have poor taste,” Harry replied, bending down to take off his own shoes. 

Louis grinned at him and tucked himself into Harry’s side as best as he could with the arm rest in the way just as the movie started to play. Harry reached over and took Louis’ hand in his, slipping his fingers between Louis’ own. Louis smiled down at their joined hands before turning his attention back to the screen where Sandra Bullock was looking as flawless as ever.

By the end of the movie, Harry was sobbing into Louis’ shoulder, the material of his jumper damp with Harry’s tears.

“Sorry,” Harry mumbled. “I haven’t cried this much in one of her movies since _The Blind Side_.”

“It’s okay,” Louis said soothingly. He reached over and ran his hand through Harry’s hair, digging his fingertips into the scalp just like he knew Harry liked. Harry pushed back into his hand and wiped at his eyes with the heel of his palm. “You alright?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he replied. “Just want to get rid of these before we see the others.”

Louis smiled softly and tugged the cuff of his jumper down so he could wipe at Harry’s eyes to dry them properly. “There,” he said. “Perfect.”

Harry laughed wetly, ducking his head. He pulled out of Louis’ reach to put his shoes back on and Louis did the same before leaving the cinema together. The other boys were waiting in the corridor for them and Niall said that he needed dinner before they could go back to the mansion. 

After they’d had dinner together, Zayn drove his Porsche back with Liam and Louis took his Range Rover. Niall and Harry were playing a game of some kind in the backseat, their laughter keeping Louis awake and happy, joining in whenever he could. Louis parked the car in the garage and shut off the engine with ease. Niall and Harry both looked sleepily at him as the car stopped and Louis got out, opening the back passenger door for them to climb out of.

“I’m going to bed now, I can’t keep my eyes open,” Niall said through a yawn. Harry and Louis said their good nights to him and he super sped off. 

“Cheeky bastard,” Louis said jealously. “C’mon, Harry, let’s get to bed.”

“Okay, Lou.”

Louis guided Harry up to their room and left Harry to change into his pyjamas while he went and brushed his teeth, getting rid of the stale popcorn feeling on his tongue. By the time Louis got back from the bathroom, Harry was curled up in Louis’ bed, the covers pulled up to his chin. Louis bit his lip and shut off the overhead light, leaving only his lamp on.

“What are you doing?” he whispered as he approached the bed. 

“Sleeping,” Harry replied without opening his eyes.

Louis sighed and got changed into his own pyjamas quickly. He slipped into the bed next to Harry who immediately curled around him. Louis stretched his arm back to turn off his lamp, plunging the room into darkness. Louis could feel Harry’s breath on his neck – it was warm and a little damp but Louis couldn’t bring himself to care. He let Harry cling to him. He figured Harry needed it after having to part with his sister again. 

“Had a good day, Lou,” Harry mumbled against Louis’ collarbone. “Did you?”

“Yeah, Haz, I did,” Louis replied honestly. 

“Can you stroke my hair?” Harry mumbled, his voice getting heavier.

“Of course.” Louis carded his fingers through Harry’s curls, gently rubbing at his scalp with his fingertips and Harry fell asleep almost instantly. 

He was warm around Louis, almost burning in every spot he touched. It should have bothered Louis with how close they were and how intimate it felt but it felt too right to be anything else. Louis dropped a kiss to the top of Harry’s head and closed his eyes, ready to let sleep overcome him too.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warning: Underage drinking.

Chapter Five  
 _Harry_  


The sun was surprisingly hot, Harry thought, as he ran laps with the other guys. It was probably because they had already been running for at least half an hour. It was odd to think, with the amount of sunshine there was that it had been raining for almost a solid week. Scotland’s weather would never cease to amaze Harry, no matter how long he spent in the country.

His lungs were beginning to burn from over exertion and Harry was pretty sure that he was going to have cramps in his calves at the end of their session. He didn’t mind running, he loved it, in fact. Running was one sport that Harry was able to do, considering he wasn’t overly adept at many others. He lacked the coordination for them but running was easy. Sure, he fell over thin air sometimes but running was constant. It was his feet pounding against the dirt ground, one foot in front of the other. He couldn’t really go wrong with that. 

Louis was running next to him, his breathing laboured as well. They had both been training extra hard lately, both for their sessions and in the gym with Liam at least twice a week. It was exhausting and most nights they ended up falling into a deep, heavy sleep, but it was all a part of being a student at good old Mutant High. 

“Look at them,” Louis panted from next to Harry, nodding up ahead where Liam and Zayn were running side by side, their arms practically rubbing between them. Harry smiled as he saw their friends. He’d known for a while that Zayn had a thing for Liam and that Liam had one for Zayn as well but neither of them were keen to do anything about it. Zayn would just brood more than usual, lying on Harry or Louis’ beds, complaining that Liam wouldn’t notice him even if he ran around naked. Harry begged to differ, he was one hundred percent sure that Liam would notice and pay _very_ close attention to that. Zayn wouldn’t have it, though. Unless it was shoved in his face, Harry was sure that Zayn wouldn’t believe it ever.

“They’re just running,” Harry replied but Louis had a determined look on his face. Harry knew that look; it meant that Louis was thinking something that was likely to get them all into trouble. 

He didn’t like to admit to Louis that he liked his stupid ideas; even the ones that resulted in Louis having to do dishes in the kitchen for _all_ three meals for an entire week after Louis had been caught trying to scare the younger students by walking around their rooms at night while invisible and making scary noises. Harry figured that Louis didn’t need a lot of encouragement. Harry hadn’t thought to tell Louis that one of the girls whose room he was in could see people’s powers when they were using them. It wasn’t an overly strong power but she always knew when someone was there. She said it was like she could see their auras and that she always knew when someone was present. It didn’t work well for Louis as she had immediately told one of the teachers and Louis had immediately got into trouble.

Louis was fun and wild. He was unpredictable in the best and worst way possible but Harry loved it. He found Louis utterly fascinating. He wanted to be around Louis all of the time to see what his mind came up with next.

They were close, he and Louis, despite Louis still not letting Harry completely in. Harry would wait, though. He wanted Louis to share whatever dark secret he was keeping just because his empathic ability often told him that people felt better after they talked. Harry had still yet to be able to get a read of _any_ kind from Louis as Louis’ shield around his mind protected him from any kind of psychic or empathic prodding. Harry guessed it was a good thing, though. It forced him to get to know Louis and his feelings on a more personal level. He asked Louis things he would normally sense off other people and it was exhilarating not knowing what Louis was feeling before Louis himself did.

“Watch this,” Louis muttered. He threw his hand out and produced a force field that broke its way between Liam and Zayn, forcible separating them by at least two feet.

Harry bit his lip to keep from laughing and Zayn and Liam’s expressions.

“What was that for?” Zayn asked, looking back at Louis with a frown.

“Wanted to get in front!” Louis replied and with a burst of speed, he ran in front of them, taking over their spot in the lead. Harry ran after him, easily catching up. It wasn’t a race by any means but it was fun to see the indignant look Liam’s face as they both beat his personal record.

They slowed down and finally came to a stop, breathing heavily. Niall sped over to them and grinned. 

“Looking a little tired there, lads,” he said cheekily, grinning at them.

Louis playfully punched Niall in the arm and Harry rolled his eyes, bending over to grab two drink bottles from the crate that had been left there by Nick. He passed one to Louis who smiled at him and cracked the lid, taking a long sip. Harry stopped and stared, watching as Louis’ throat worked, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed. Harry subconsciously licked his lips as he kept his gaze on Louis, completely forgetting that he was thirsty as well.

“Good work there, boys,” Nick said as he approached them, a clipboard in his hand. He was scribbling on it with a pen when Harry looked over and he figured he was marking their times. “I’ve been told to inform you that there is a field trip coming up in a few weeks to the Natural History Museum. Attendance is mandatory for all upper year students.”

Harry nodded along with the other boys. He was excited to go to the museum, he hadn’t been since he was younger and it would be good to visit again. 

“Harry,” Nick started, making his way over to where Harry was standing, still clutching his full drink bottle. He uncapped the bottle and took a sip. Nick put his arm on Harry’s shoulder and squeezed softly. “Good running today. You’re really improving from this time last year.”

Harry beamed at Nick. “Thanks,” he said. “I’ve been trying.”

“It’s definitely paying off,” Nick replied. He patted Harry on the arm and then crossed over to where Louis was standing. Harry took a long drink of his water, feeling quite proud of his running skill and his ever improving times.

Louis joined him a moment later and huffed. “Does anyone else get a super creepy feeling from Nick?” he blurted out.

Harry quickly looked around and saw that Nick was thankfully out of earshot before he turned to Louis with a questioning gaze. “What do you mean?” he asked.

“Like, he’s _really_ creepy,” Louis replied. “Something isn’t right there and he’s always making snide remarks to me.”

“I think you’re looking too much into it, Lou,” Liam said from where he was sitting on the ground, stretching out his muscles. “He’s a teacher, he wouldn’t make snide remarks.”

Harry took in Louis’ expression but Louis fell silent. 

“I’m going for a shower,” Louis said before walking off. Harry’s gaze followed him for a few moments before Niall jumped on his back. Harry quickly reacted to grab Niall so he wouldn’t slide off.

“Giddy up, cowboy!” Niall yelled in his ear. Harry winced. 

“You’re not as light as you think you are, Nialler,” Harry said. He groaned under the weight of his friend and staggered forwards. Once he had got his footing, he could walk properly, carrying Niall back towards the mansion. 

His mind wandered to what Louis meant and how his expression had changed drastically at Liam’s comment. He resolved to question Louis about it later when they were alone.

“Harry,” Niall said, patting his shoulder.

“Yes?” Harry asked as he headed for the lifts. There was no way that he was going to carry Niall up seven flights of stairs. 

“I was wondering…” Harry groaned and set Niall down in the lift. “Would you be able to help me cook dinner for Ashley? She wants to have a proper date but doesn’t want to leave the mansion for it.”

Harry grinned. “So things are serious between you two then?” he asked and Niall grinned. 

“I think so,” Niall replied. “I mean, I hope they are. She’s wicked and we get along really well. I just want to do this one thing for her. She’s said a few times that she misses her mum’s roast beef and I got me mum to send me her recipe so I could make it for her.”

“You’re such a romantic, Niall,” Harry said, poking Niall in the shoulder. The lift stopped on their floor and they got out. “Of course I’ll help.”

“Thank you!” Niall beamed. “Can you do it for Friday night? I can get the food delivered by then.”

Harry nodded. “Sure,” he replied. “Friday is good.”

They walked down the corridor to their respective rooms to get their things for a shower. Harry’s skin felt sticky with drying sweat and he wanted to wash it off before dinner. He couldn’t wait to pull on his pyjamas and crawl into bed. He hoped that Louis would let him share his bed again. They had shared Louis’ bed a lot lately. It had become a frequent thing between them. They’d stay up and talk, or do their homework together on Louis’ bed and just fall asleep. More often than not, Harry woke up spooning Louis. It was nice, he thought. It felt good and he wanted to wake up that way every morning but he didn’t want to push his feelings onto Louis and force him into doing something he didn’t want to do.

All of the boys were quite affectionate people. They had all fallen asleep with each other at some point or another during the years they had known each other and had all done it since Louis had arrived at the school, too. It was comforting, Harry thought. He felt safe with his four best friends. He felt even safer in Louis’ arms and surrounded by his force field. 

Every night that Harry slept in Louis’ bed, he would wait until Louis fell asleep and he would watch the force field come out, expanding until it surrounded both of them and the entire bed. Harry had been worried that it would act like the bubble it so often looked like, and would inevitably suffocate them but every time he had been happily proved wrong. Louis’ force field shielded them from everything but it didn’t keep natural air from coming into it at all. 

Louis had been working with his powers hard over the last month and Harry was proud of him. He had come to the school not even knowing what his powers were but he had focused and worked hard so that he could control them.

Harry met Niall in the bathroom a few minutes later. He tried not to be too disappointed that Louis had already disappeared. He stepped into his stall and turned the water on. He and Niall started singing together for fun, choosing something from the _Grease_ soundtrack as they had watched that movie at the weekend and it was still stuck in Harry’s head. 

Once they had finished in the showers and were getting dressed, Niall fixed Harry with a pointed look.

“What?” Harry wondered.

“What’s up with you and Louis these days?” Niall asked as he ran his towel through his hair, still shirtless but thankfully with trousers on.

“Nothing,” Harry replied. 

Niall snorted. “C’mon, mate,” he said. “Anyone can see that you’re head over heels for him.”

“I’m…” Harry trailed off. “Okay, I am.”

Niall grinned widely. “Well?” Harry blinked and Niall flicked him with his towel. “Are you going to do something about it then?”

Harry sucked his bottom lip into his mouth. “I don’t know,” he replied. “I don’t think Louis’ interested.”

“You’re daft,” Niall responded, rolling his eyes. “You two both need to get your head out of the clouds and realise what’s right in front of you.”

With that, Niall left, shrugging on his shirt as he did. Harry frowned after him but didn’t bother to move. Zayn entered the bathroom a few minutes later while Harry was towelling off his hair and he whacked Harry over the back of the head with his towel as he passed.

“Ow,” Harry grumbled. 

“Your boyfriend is a wanker,” Zayn said as he stepped into the shower stall. 

“…I don’t have a boyfriend?”

“Louis,” Zayn replied exasperatedly. “I was having a real moment with Li and he ruined it by shoving that force field between us.”

“Sorry, mate,” Harry apologised. “He does his own thing.”

Zayn huffed and turned the shower on. “I want to go get my tattoo on Saturday, are you still coming?” 

“Yeah, of course,” Harry replied, folding his towel in half. “Are Li, Niall and Louis still going to that footy match?”

“Yeah, they are,” Zayn said. “Li’s really excited. He keeps talking about the seats they got. Kind of wish I was going with him.”

“I’m sure Louis will trade out with you if you want to go,” Harry suggested. “He won’t mind.”

“Nah,” Zayn said, talking louder over the spray of the water. “I want it to just be Liam and me if we do anything.”

Harry nodded, but realised Zayn couldn’t see him. “You should ask him out. Like on a proper date, yeah?”

“Maybe,” Zayn replied. “Anyway, give us some privacy; I want to have a wank.”

Harry laughed. “Alright, see you at dinner.”

He left the bathroom and headed to his and Louis’ room. Louis was curled up on his bed, a text book in hand and his notebook in front of him. Harry put his belongings away and went to join Louis on his bed. 

“Need a hand?” he asked.

Louis looked up. “Yeah, go on then.”

Harry grinned and pulled Louis’ text book into his hand, finding where he was at so they could do their homework together. Louis’ bare foot rested against Harry’s calf, tucked in comfortably like it was created to fit there. It was comforting to Harry. They worked diligently until it was dinner time and they headed down to the dining hall with the other boys. They sat down at their usual table and were joined by Ashley, who smiled brightly at them all and kissed Niall on the lips. Harry grinned and joined in the cheering with the other boys.

“Alright, alright, shut up,” Niall said. “Yes, Ash and me are a _thing_ now. Like, proper.”

“Good on you, Niall,” Harry said, throwing his friend a wink. 

“Yeah, now we can tease you about being the only taken one of the group,” Louis commented, poking Niall in the side. “How _does_ it feel to be married at sixteen?”

“Shove off, Lou,” Niall returned but he was smiling brightly that it counteracted any hint of annoyance in his voice. 

Ashley, Harry had learned, was a teleporter. Her abilities were strong but she couldn’t teleport anywhere that she couldn’t see or know exactly what was there when she got there. He found out that she could teleport home and back to the school just fine because she knew what her house was like, where it was and where everything was located but if she tried to do for anywhere else, she could end up hurting herself pretty badly.

She was also a wicked chess player and had an appetite that could rival Niall’s. She really was a great match for him. Harry hadn’t ever seen Niall as happy as when he was with Ashley. 

Harry liked his friends being happy; it made him happy, especially when all of their emotions floated over to him whenever he didn’t focus enough. He had known most of these boys for two years and each of them deserved to be happy and if there was someone else that could contribute to that happiness, then Harry was all for it. He knew he was a hopeless romantic but it was worth it when he saw the looks on his friends’ faces. 

He wondered if he could nudge Liam and Zayn in the right direction or if that would be asking for trouble. 

He glanced over at them and saw how close they were sitting as they ate their dinner and figured that there wasn’t any need for him to intervene, they were doing alright on their own.

~*~

“Niall, just _how_ much do you plan on eating?”

Niall had a sheepish grin on his face as he loaded yet another bag of food onto the counter. “I wanted to make sure I had enough of everything.”

Harry stared at the countless bags of groceries and started unpacking them. “I think I have enough here to feed an army.”

Niall just raised his eyebrows at Harry. “Have you met me? With the amount of energy I burn, I’ll easily eat all of this.”

“Of course,” Harry replied. “Well, let’s get started. You peel the potatoes while I get the beef into the oven.”

They worked diligently together in the kitchen. Harry had his iPod connected to a docking system and had chosen a playlist to set the mood. He loved cooking with music on, it helped him concentrate. Once Harry had the beef in the oven, he set the timer for it to cook and started on the other vegetables, cleaning them up and cutting them into precise portions. Niall was a good worker. His super speed helped him cut things fast and with accuracy that even Harry admired. 

It took a while to get everything prepared but they needed the time since the beef would take a few hours to cook properly. Once the vegetables were all prepared, ready to be cooked, Harry set everything out properly so it was all ready to just be cooked. Niall had gone all out for this date. The kitchen had been rearranged so there was a two person table tucked against the far wall. There was a deep red table cloth covering the table and there was fine china that had Harry curious to where it came from. Niall had probably bought it especially for the occasion. Not that Harry could blame him, of course; it made the entire setting look amazing.

There was a single red rose sitting in a tall, slim vase in the centre of the table and there were even champagne glasses set out. Niall had snuck in a bottle of champagne for he and Ashley to have with their dinner and it was currently cooling in the refrigerator. Harry had asked the other boys to make sure none of their teachers found out about the champagne as Niall would likely be suspended from the school for having it, or even expelled, and none of them wanted that. Louis had promised that he would turn the bottle invisible if any of the teachers even got wind of what was going on. It had reassured both Harry and Niall immensely and not for the first time, Harry was glad of Louis’ amazing abilities.

“Smells good in here.”

Harry looked up from the pan of gravy he was setting onto the stove top. He had potatoes boiling to mash and he had other vegetable steaming. The smells were all quite strong and delicious. 

“Thanks, Zayn!” Niall said cheerily. “I did it all meself.”

Harry and Zayn both snorted. 

“Alright, Harry’s done most of it but I’ve helped!” Niall amended. 

“Is there going to be enough for the rest of us?” Zayn asked, lifting the lid of one of the pans. Harry reached over and slapped his hand.

“Not for you, there isn’t,” he replied and Zayn shot him a sad-eyed look that he _had_ to have learned from Liam.

“That’s unfair,” Zayn said petulantly as he set the lid back onto the pan.

“I’ll make you guys dinner next week,” Harry promised. “Besides, I think there’s spaghetti bolognese for dinner tonight.”

“Yeah, but this smells so good,” Zayn replied. “I want roast beef now.”

Harry rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the gravy. Niall opened the oven to check on the Yorkshire puddings and grinned. 

“This all looks amazing,” he said as he closed the oven door again. 

“Can I have a Yorkshire pudding at least?” Zayn asked.

Harry looked to Niall who shrugged. “Sure,” Niall replied. “I’ll save you one.”

Zayn grinned. “Alright,” he said. “See you downstairs, Harry. Have fun getting lucky tonight, Niall. Just make sure you keep it down.”

Niall waggled his eyebrows at Zayn in response who laughed as he walked off.

“What time’s Ashley getting here?” Harry asked.

Niall looked up at the clock on the wall. “Soon,” he replied. “Do you mind if I leave you to it? I want to go and get changed.”

“Go,” Harry said with a nod. “I’ve got this all under control.”

Niall whipped off his apron and sped from the kitchen, leaving Harry alone once more. He stirred the gravy once more before checking on the other vegetables. Everything was almost finished cooking and by the time Niall got back, it would be ready to serve. He pottered around, pouring out a glass of champagne each for Niall and Ashley before putting the bottle in the bucket of ice that was attached to the table. It all looked very elegant for such a simple meal, Harry thought. He decided that was the beauty of it, though. Niall had really outdone himself.

Harry turned around and jumped when he saw Louis leaning against the door way, an amused smile on his face.

“How long have you been standing there?” he wondered.

Louis shrugged. “A while. You look good in an apron.”

Harry looked down at the apron that he was wearing. It was the same bright red one that he had been wearing a few weeks ago when he and Louis had made muffins and breakfast. It wasn’t anything fancy but it was one that his mum had made him so he liked it. “Thanks,” he replied.

“How’s it all going?” Louis asked, stepping into the kitchen properly.

“Good,” Harry said. “I just have to carve the beef when Niall and Ashley get here and serve dinner.”

“Do you need a hand?”

Harry shook his head. “Nah, I’ve got it.”

“Alright,” Louis replied. He leaned against the now clean counter and watched Harry as he moved around the kitchen. 

Harry didn’t mind being watched, he knew what he was doing and what needed to happen next so it wasn’t distracting. He had just started to carve the beef when Ashley appeared, followed by Niall who sped up next to her.

“Sit,” Harry instructed. “I’ll be done in a moment.”

The pair sat and Louis disappeared from view. Harry served up their dinner and told them that he would do the clearing up later. He didn’t want them to have to worry about anything like that during their big date. 

Harry untied his apron and hung it up on the hook near the door before stepping out of the kitchen. Louis was waiting for him when he was done and he looped his arm through Harry’s own as they walked.

“You’re a good man, Harry Styles,” he said. “And a _very_ good friend.”

Harry grinned. “I love cooking,” he replied simply. “And Niall loves eating, so it’s a win-win, really.”

“It is,” Louis agreed softly. “Maybe one day you can teach me how to cook like that?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, I’d love to,” he said, already looking forward to it.

That night, after all of the dishes were done and the left overs were put into containers in the fridge, Harry shuffled into his and Louis’ room, feeling exhausted. He yawned as he pushed the door open and saw Louis sitting in bed, his knees bent to prop a book up against them.

“You look exhausted,” Louis said.

“I am exhausted,” Harry replied, sleepily changing into his pyjamas. “Cooking takes a lot of work and I was already tired from the simulation today.”

“Why didn’t you tell Niall you were too tired to make dinner for him?” Louis asked.

“No, I couldn’t let him down like that,” Harry said, pushing his fringe off his forehead. “Besides, I like cooking.”

“So you’ve said,” Louis said. Harry looked up to see a fond smile on Louis’ face. “C’mere you.”

Harry padded across the room and settled on the bed next to Louis. “Whatcha reading?” he asked. 

“History book,” Louis replied. “I wanted to brush up before the trip to the museum next weekend.”

Harry hummed softly. “Are you excited for your footy match tomorrow?”

Louis fingers easily found their way into his hair and Harry’s eyes drooped from the pressure of Louis’ fingers on his scalp. “Yeah, I am,” he said. 

Harry fell asleep before Louis could say anything else.

~*~

Tattoos had always fascinated Harry.

Ever since he saw his first tattoo as a kid, they had fascinated him. The way that people would permanently mark their skin with ink in different shapes, patterns, words and colours, all with a meaning that the wearer only really knew about.

He had often thought about getting one himself but hadn’t decided on anything specific just yet. He was torn between wanting a quote or a shape or even a piece of artwork that would forever be etched into his skin. Tattoos were beautiful to Harry.

Zayn had a few tattoos already, each of them with a significant meaning behind them that Zayn only shared if he wanted to. When Harry had asked if they were painful, Zayn hadn’t lied and told him that it wasn’t, he had told Harry that it was painful but it was pain that he could control, that he could deal with because he knew it was happening. Harry had caught a strong sense of emotion from Zayn the first time he had told Harry that and Harry just understood what he meant. 

It was fascinating to watch someone getting tattooed, Harry decided. Zayn was getting something tattooed on his right forearm this time. Harry wasn’t sure about the meaning behind it but he liked watching the artwork come to life on Zayn’s skin. The way the ink was all too suddenly permanent on him, no turning back. 

“Have you asked Louis out on a date yet?” Zayn wondered.

Harry’s attention snapped up to him, away from his arm. “Have you asked Liam out yet?” he retorted.

Zayn raised an eyebrow at him. “This isn’t about me, Haz and you know it.”

Harry sighed. “I don’t think he’s interested, Zayn,” he started. “Every time we get close, he pulls away. Not just physically, either.”

“Harry, you sleep together every night, he’s not pulling away,” Zayn pointed out. “I’ve seen you two. You’re like an old married couple already.”

Harry smiled to himself at that idea. It didn’t sound too bad to him. “When the time is right, I’ll know.”

“At this rate you’ll be sixty,” Zayn replied. “Want to go shopping after this?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “I need something to eat, too.”

“Same, I’m starving.”

The tattoo took another half an hour to complete and after the lecture on proper tattoo care, Zayn paid and they both left the store. 

“Hold my hand,” Zayn said and Harry immediately reached out to grab Zayn’s hand as they walked. As his fingers slipped between Zayn’s, Harry couldn’t help but notice how they didn’t quite sit as perfectly as Louis’ did between his own. He kept that thought to himself as they walked silently down the street.

They headed into a few different stores, picking out what they wanted before leaving again, not really paying attention to anything except whatever caught their eye.

“So my mum called,” Zayn said as they wandered out of a clothing store that had a lot of overpriced stuff, in Harry’s opinion.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” Zayn repeated with a nod. “The girls have been asking about me, apparently. The stepdad doesn’t approve, of course.”

“Zayn…”

“Don’t, Haz.”

They fell silent again and Harry knew he had to wait for Zayn to want to share again, so he didn’t push it. They wandered into another store and Harry’s gaze fell upon a gorgeous jumper that he thought would look amazing on Louis. He checked the size of it and slung it over his arm. Every other item that he picked out he thought would look good on Louis and by the time they were ready to leave, more than half of the things he had purchased were for Louis.

“You’re in so deep, mate,” Zayn commented, slipping his hand back into Harry’s.

“Let’s get coffee,” Harry said in lieu of a response and led them into the nearest Starbucks.

Once they had ordered and collected their coffees, Harry guided Zayn to an empty table. He scooped off the whipped cream with a plastic spoon and took a long sip. 

“I’m surprised you didn’t order tea.”

Harry looked up at Zayn, spoon dangling from his lips and he cocked his head to the side. “Huh?”

“You know, because that’s what Louis would’ve ordered,” Zayn replied.

Harry made a face at him before turning back to his drink. “I like both.”

Zayn just grinned at him and reached for his just tattooed arm to rub at it. Harry caught his hand and tugged it out of the way. Zayn frowned at him but Harry just laced their fingers together to stop Zayn from scratching at it.

“I want to see them,” Zayn started. “I miss my sisters so much.”

Harry put the spoon back into his drink and gave his sole attention to Zayn, giving his fingers a reassuring squeeze. 

“I hate that he’s so controlling, like, I get that he can’t accept that I’m not straight, but not letting me see my sisters?” 

Harry, like the others, wasn’t aware of the full details of what had happened in Zayn’s past but between them all, they had pieced the puzzle together enough to make sense of it. He hated Zayn’s stepdad on principle. He didn’t understand how he could just get rid of Zayn from his life like that. Harry had been lucky, he guessed, that his biological father had left before Harry had a chance to get to know him. It still hurt a little to think about but he’d had Robin in his life for so long that he didn’t really know any different. Robin, to Harry at least, was his dad, and he loved him like he was.

“I’m going to tell them that we’re going to the museum next week,” Zayn said. “I want to see if they can meet me there.”

“Alright,” Harry said. “I think it’s a good idea. You need to see them.”

Zayn nodded. “Yeah, I do.” He paused and took another sip of his drink. “I’ll see if Liam can come with me to meet them. Would you and Lou be able to cover for me?”

“Of course,” Harry replied. “You know we’d do anything for you, Zayn.” 

“I know,” Zayn said and that was that. They finished their coffees off mostly in silence. Zayn was deep in his thoughts and Harry didn’t even need his empathic ability to know what he was feeling. Zayn’s sisters were very important to him.

During the last summer, Zayn had found his own apartment in London, that he had forged a signature on the tenancy agreement as they wouldn’t let a minor live on their own. Zayn couldn’t ask his mum or his stepdad to co-sign so Niall had taken it into his own hands and had forged the signature so that Zayn wouldn’t have to feel bad about doing the wrong thing. They had all helped him move in and had stayed a few nights each, none of them leaving him alone for too long at a time. Harry had stayed for a few weeks while his mum and Robin had taken a holiday to Italy and whenever Gemma was bored, she stayed as well. Between them all, Zayn never spent more than one night alone. They were family, in the most unconventional sense, but they were what each other had. 

Zayn hadn’t really seen his sisters since he started at Xavier’s School. It was nigh on impossible with how strict their stepdad was but every now and then, his mum would send Zayn a note telling him a time and a place to meet them. Zayn’s mum, Tricia, never stayed for very long, claiming that she had errands to run but Zayn got to see his three sisters and that’s what mattered most to him.

He had told Harry that once he had finished school and had a good, steady job, he would take his sisters away from their stepdad and they could all live together. 

It was a nice idea, Harry thought, but he wasn’t sure just how it would all work. Zayn’s sisters, for the most part, seemed fine. They didn’t seem hurt or angry; they just missed Zayn a lot. It was Zayn who had drawn the short end of the stick by being the odd one out, by not only being a mutant but by being something other than straight. His stepdad hadn’t even wanted to know what Zayn had been going through; he had just kicked him out without another glance. It was only after Zayn’s mother had intervened that they had struck up the deal that they did. Harry was glad that Zayn had that safety net at least; otherwise he wasn’t sure how Zayn would manage to live.

Harry figured that Liam’s family would have taken Zayn in without any hesitation but Zayn was too fiercely independent for that. 

“We should get lunch,” Zayn said after a while. “I don’t know when the footy match finishes but they’ll probably eat there. You should wine and dine me, Styles. Like a test run for when you and Louis finally get your act together.”

Harry shook his head, his curls falling in his face as he did. He pushed them aside and gave Zayn a smile. “C’mon, then,” he said, standing up. He picked up their shopping bags with one hand and offered the other to Zayn who took it gladly. They stopped at Zayn’s car to put their shopping bags in the boot and carried on until they reached T.G.I. Fridays, Harry’s favourite restaurant.

“I want to bring Louis here one day,” Harry said as they sat down at a table. “Not necessarily _this_ one, but this chain.”

Zayn nodded. “Yeah, he’d like it.”

“He would,” Harry agreed, his mind wandering to what Louis would think of the restaurant and if he’d ever been to one before. A part of him hoped that Louis hadn’t so that he could experience it for the first time with Harry. He wanted to share a lot of firsts with Louis. He knew he was thinking too far forward but Harry wanted the rest of his firsts to be with Louis. Every single one of them.

They ordered their lunch and Harry glanced at Zayn who was playing with his phone.

“Liam reckons there’s another hour at least to go,” Zayn said, setting his phone down on the table after he locked the screen. “He says he thought Louis was loud before but he’s even louder at a football match.”

Harry grinned. “Sounds like Louis,” he replied. “I kinda wish I had gone.”

“You could’ve,” Zayn said. “I would’ve gone too.”

“Nah,” Harry shook his head. “I wanted to spend some time with you.”

“Aw,” Zayn teased. “It’s so you could pour your heart out to me about all of your Louis feelings, right?”

Harry grinned and picked at a coaster sitting on the table. “Maybe,” he said. 

“Are you going to moon over his eyes, or write sonnets about the way he breathes when he sleeps?” Zayn asked, resting his chin on his hands and raising both of his eyebrows at Harry, mocking him. Harry didn’t care, though. He liked the way that he felt about Louis. He also knew that Zayn felt the same feelings for Liam but he was too stubborn to admit it, always telling Harry that if it was meant to be, then it would happen, that he didn’t want to push it and end up having Liam hate him for it. Often Harry wanted to smack him over the head and tell him to just go for it but it would make him a bit of a hypocrite considering how he was with Louis.

“He does have lovely eyes,” Harry agreed. A waitress came to take their orders, effectively cutting their conversation short. Harry waited until she had left before nudging Zayn’s foot under the table. “That reminds me, I want to pick up a new notebook, mine’s falling apart.”

“Probably because you’ve written too many love letters to Louis in it,” Zayn replied.

Harry just grinned in response. 

Their waitress returned a short while later with their drink orders and said that their lunch wouldn’t be too long in coming out. He and Zayn chatted about their school work and how they were all progressing with their training. Zayn started to talk about their trip to the museum and how he wanted it all to pan out. Harry could tell that he was excited to see his sisters. He had sent his mother a text before they had left Starbucks and he was just waiting on a response. 

Zayn’s phoned beeped on the table and he glanced down at it. Harry watched Zayn’s expression fall, looking sad and disjointed. Harry pressed his foot against Zayn’s underneath the table, trying to give his friend some source of comfort.

“Zayn?” he asked.

Zayn shook his head. “She won’t let them come.”

Harry’s mouth dropped open and he could sense the anger coming from Zayn. It was powerful and Harry had to grip the table to ground himself. Zayn’s emotions always affected him the most out of everyone because he was so good at keeping them in. Zayn rubbed at his temples and Harry could feel the stress rolling off him in waves. He reached across the table for Zayn’s hand but it was too late, a storm started all too suddenly outside, the rain pouring down in sheets. 

“Zayn,” Harry said softly. “Look at me.”

Zayn looked at Harry, his eyes completely white. Harry took both of Zayn’s hands in his own and squeezed them.

“Focus on me,” Harry continued. “Focus on my voice, okay? I’m going to guide you through this.” Zayn nodded and squeezed his eyes shut. Harry laced their fingers together and spoke in soft tones to Zayn. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll find another way so that you can see them, yeah?”

Zayn nodded but he didn’t open his eyes and the storm didn’t let up. A loud clap of thunder rumbled through the sky and the windows on the restaurant shook a little. Harry looked out of the window to see people scurrying for dry shops, cars all but crawling down the street from the sudden downpour. It was good that they were only in Newcastle and they were used to crazy weather like Zayn had accidentally produced. 

“We’ll get Niall to sort something out, okay?” Harry said, squeezing Zayn’s hands again. “He’s got contacts all over London and he’ll make sure that they’re there, waiting to see you. Just think about how big Safaa is going to be. She’ll be so excited to see you.”

Zayn slowly opened his eyes and Harry was pleased to see that they were their usual colour. He didn’t let go of Zayn’s hands yet and had opened his mouth to keep talking to them when their waitress appeared at the table again. She raised an eyebrow in their direction and then smiled.

“My little girl is scared of storms, too,” she commented, setting their plates down on the table top. “She always wants to crawl into bed with me whenever there’s a big one like this.”

Harry nodded. “I used to do the same when I was a kid,” he said.

“Enjoy your lunch, pet,” she said, throwing a wink at them before leaving.

“You alright?” Harry asked. Zayn nodded slowly.

“I think so,” he replied. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s okay,” Harry reassured him. “This city was looking too dry anyway.”

Zayn’s lips quirked in a small smile before he grabbed his plate of food and pulled it closer. Harry did the same, picking up his cutlery so that he could cut into his meal. The storm slowly let up as Zayn calmed down while eating his lunch. 

His phone went off on the table again and immediately the rain started up again. Harry reached for the phone but Zayn put his hand on top of Harry’s. “I’ve got it,” he said and Harry pulled his hand back.

“It’s Liam,” Zayn said simply. “He’s worried about me.”

Harry smiled. “That sounds like Li.”

Zayn set his cutlery down to type out a response before putting his phone back down on the table. “He figured the storm was me.”

“He alright?”

Zayn nodded. “Just worried,” he replied. “Said that he and the lads will be leaving soon. They’ll meet us here.”

“Alright,” Harry said, turning back to his lunch, eager to finish it. 

The storm had all but let up by the time Liam, Niall and Louis had wandered into the restaurant. Harry glanced up and saw Louis pushing his wet hair off his forehead. He caught Louis’ gaze and smiled, his stomach tingling happily when Louis smiled back at him.

“Where’s all the food gone?” Niall asked, sitting down next to Liam who had immediately sat down next to Zayn. He took Zayn’s hand, his eyes full of concern but Harry could hear Zayn’s hushed voice telling him that he was okay. 

As Louis sat down next to Harry, Zayn and Liam got up so that Zayn could go have a cigarette. Niall ordered more food and drinks for everyone, claiming that the food at the football match had been terrible. 

“So, that storm was Zayn?” Louis asked while Niall was gone.

“Yeah, it was,” Harry replied. “He freaked out for a bit there but we talked and I got him calm enough that the Met Office wouldn’t try to figure out what had caused it. Anyway, how was the match?”

“It was good,” Louis said with a grin. He launched into a detailed recount of the match, which Niall only too happily joined in with when he came back from ordering more food. Harry happily listened to their ramblings about the football match and wished, not for the first time, that he had been there too.

After a while, Liam and Zayn re-entered the restaurant, hands clasped tightly between them. The storm had let up and the sun was now shining down on the town like nothing had ever happened. Harry caught Zayn’s gaze and Zayn just nodded once at Harry and gave him a small smile. It wasn’t much but it made Harry feel a lot better. Liam was good for Zayn. Harry could see the positive effect they had on each other and he thought that it was good that Liam was able to calm Zayn down and talk sense into him whenever he needed it, which thankfully wasn’t all that often.

Harry felt a hand brush against his thigh under the table and he glanced at Louis, who was still looking at Niall, talking animatedly with him. Harry slipped his hand into Louis’ own and grinned when he felt Louis’ fingers curling around his own. 

Once they had finished eating, Niall disappeared, claiming that he would meet them later at the car. 

“Hey,” Liam said, addressing Harry and Louis. “Zayn and I are going to go for a walk. Do you two mind being left alone?”

“Of course not!” Louis replied with a grin. “We’re going to go for a walk ourselves.”

“Alright,” Liam said with a nod. They parted ways after deciding on a time to meet back at the car. 

“So, Harold, what ever shall we do?” Louis asked as they wandered down a street not too far from the restaurant. 

Harry grinned and reached for Louis’ hand, smiling when Louis automatically slipped his fingers between Harry’s own. “Why don’t we just see where the path takes us?”

“Interesting,” Louis said, tilting his head a little to the side to look at Harry. “I’m okay with that.”

They wandered aimlessly through the streets, stopping at shops that Zayn and Harry hadn’t gone into earlier that day. They stepped into one store and Louis decided that they were both going to try on as many outfits as possible without actually buying anything. Harry laughed and told him that he was ridiculous but moments later, he was joining Louis in trying on clothes. 

After they had tried on at least five different outfits each, Harry reached for an overly expensive pair of black skinny jeans. 

“These are actually really nice,” Harry said as he looked at his reflection of the mirror outside of the changing rooms. He liked the way they clung to his legs like a second skin, hugging every single muscle tightly.

“Shit,” Louis cursed and Harry looked over at him. Louis had his head stuck in the sleeve of a jumper and Harry laughed loudly.

“Hold still, Lou,” Harry said, crossing over to where he was. He pulled the jumper so it wasn’t covering Louis’ head and he gently straightened it until Louis was wearing the jumper properly. He smoothed the material down until it was sitting properly on Louis’ body. He glanced at Louis, who had a slightly shocked expression on his face. His hair was in disarray, sticking out in ways that Harry had never seen before. His cheeks were flushed and his lips were wet and inviting. Harry’s hands settled on Louis’ hips, just at the hemline of the jumper. He could feel Louis’ breath puffing out and Harry moved closer on instinct, tilting his head down ever so slightly.

“If you’re not going to buy anything, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

Harry looked over at a very disgruntled looking store employee who was eyeing them with a look of sheer disdain on her face. 

“I’m getting the jeans,” Harry replied, shooting her a smile. Her face relaxed a little and she turned and left them standing in the middle of the changing area.

Louis cleared his throat and stepped back from Harry’s grasp. “I think I’ll get this jumper, too,” he said, shucking it off. He kept his back to Harry as they changed and Harry tried not to over think it. 

He redressed in his own clothes and chose what he wanted to buy out of the things he had tried on, setting the items down on the counter next to the cashier’s till. The service assistant still looked quite put out even when Harry swiped his credit card to pay for the items. She passed their bags over and Harry gladly took them from her. 

They left the store and Harry’s phone beeped in his pocket. He checked the message that was waiting for him and turned to Louis.

“The guys are ready to leave if we are,” he said and Louis nodded. They headed back towards the car and Harry noticed that Louis didn’t bother going for his hand again. Harry tried not to let it get to him but he felt a little hurt at the rejection. 

Zayn was leaning against his Range Rover, smoking, when they approached. 

“Lou, want first shift driving?” Zayn asked, throwing Louis the keys before he could even respond.

“Sure,” Louis replied, walking around the car to the driver’s seat. Harry bit back a sigh and put their bags into the boot with the other ones. 

Harry slid into the back seat without looking at Louis and wondered what on earth he had done wrong for Louis to just shut him out like he had. Harry had never felt so confused in his life. 

Niall glanced at Harry and hopped into the front passenger’s seat to keep Louis company while Zayn and Liam slipped into the back next to Harry. It was a roomy car, which Harry was thankful for; otherwise they would have been very squashed together. 

Harry stayed silent for the majority of the ride, only speaking whenever someone specifically addressed him. He wished he had brought his headphones with him so he could listen to his own music instead of Louis’ laughter at whatever Niall was saying.

Half way through the journey, Zayn poked him in the arm. “You alright?” he asked.

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he replied simply.

Zayn shot him a confused look but turned back to Liam when Harry didn’t elaborate further. Before they were close to the manor, Niall called out that he was ordering pizzas and that Liam had the duty of keeping them warm with his powers. 

“I’m not an oven, Niall,” Liam protested. 

“Yeah but you’re the only one who won’t let them go cold or let anyone else eat them before we get back to the school!” Niall said. 

Liam huffed and rolled his eyes but obligingly took the pizzas once they picked them up from Niall’s favourite pizzeria. 

The smells filled the car, making Harry’s stomach rumble. He licked his lips and looked over at Liam, giving Liam his best puppy eyed look. Liam bodily turned away from Harry and shielded the pizzas with his arm. Harry pouted but sat back in his seat for the last five minutes of the drive.

“Louis, can you keep the pizzas invisible?” Niall asked once they all exited the car.

“Yeah but that won’t mask the smell,” Louis pointed out.

“Alright, I’ll take them and meet you guys up in Harry and Louis’ room then?” Niall said, taking the boxes from Liam. He super sped away before any of them had a chance to respond. Liam rolled his eyes and they all headed up to Harry and Louis’ room after collecting their shopping bags from the boot of Zayn’s car.

Niall was already eating some of the pizza when they walked into the room. They smelled great and Harry immediately set his shopping bags at the foot of his own bed before flopping down next to Niall on Louis’ bed, picking up a slice of his own. He took a large bite and moaned. He hadn’t had pizza in so long. 

The other boys all reached for slices of their own from other boxes. Harry kicked off his shoes and tucked his legs up underneath himself, all but inhaling the first two slices he picked up. 

“Lou, this was waiting on your bed when I came in,” Niall said, throwing a thick yellow envelope to Louis who caught it easily. He opened it and peered inside before stuffing it into the bottom drawer of his bedside table. Harry frowned, curious but kept silent about it. Louis was acting strangely and Harry ached to know what was going on inside his mind but he didn’t want to ask. 

“I’ve got something to make this a real party,” Niall said after he had polished off his fourth slice. Harry reached into one of the boxes to pick up a third and Niall got off the bed. He reached into one of the shopping bags and pulled out a bottle of vodka. He shot them all a devilish grin and unscrewed the lid. “We’re going to have pizza, drink this and play some good old fashioned truth or dare.” All five boys moved so they were sitting on the floor in a lopsided circle. 

Zayn motioned for the bottle and Niall passed it to him. He took a long sip before passing it back to Niall who did the same. Niall shuddered and wiped the back of his mouth before pressing the bottle into Harry’s hand.

“Everyone has to do at least one shot,” Niall said. Harry took a sip before passing the bottle to Liam who did the same and passed it to Louis. Louis surprised them all by taking a few long sips, wincing as he passed the bottle back to Niall, who had cheered him on. 

Harry kept his gaze on Louis for as long as he could. Louis caught his gaze and Harry looked down. 

“I’ll start,” Harry said, wiping his fingers on a napkin. He noticed that Louis’ eyes widened ever so slightly. “Zayn, truth or dare?”

“Truth,” Zayn said just before he bit into another slice of pizza. 

“What’s the most embarrassing thing that’s ever happened to you?”

Zayn groaned. “Good one, Harry,” he replied dryly. “Doniya once walked on me wanking.”

“Mate, that’s tame! I’ve done that before,” Niall said unashamedly.

“Yeah but I also had a dildo up my arse,” Zayn replied easily. 

“…That changes things,” Niall amended.

Zayn nodded at Niall. “Truth or dare?”

“Dare,” Niall replied eagerly.

“I dare you to do the cinnamon challenge,” Zayn said and Niall sped out of the room and back in with the cinnamon from the cupboard in their floor’s kitchen and a spoon. 

“Bring it on.” Niall spluttered everywhere the moment he closed his mouth around the cinnamon covered spoon. He picked up the bottle of vodka and took a few long sips, wincing when he pulled back. “That’s fucking disgusting,” he said, wiping the back of his mouth with his hand. He took another sip from the bottle before passing it to Zayn who did the same. After they’d all had another drink, Niall turned to Liam with a grin that made even Harry worried. Liam had chosen truth and Niall asked him who his first ever crush was.

“His name was Gary,” Liam started. “He was the reason that I wanted to become a firefighter. It’s a little ironic, considering my abilities but he saved my next door neighbour’s house from burning down when I was about eight and he let me try on his hat and everything afterwards.” Liam smiled and Harry felt a rush of affection coming off Liam as he recounted the tale. 

“Soppy,” Niall said, moving to lie on his stomach.

“Alright, Lou, truth or dare?” Liam asked, turning to Louis.

“Dare,” Louis replied without any hesitation. 

“I dare you to lick a bar of soap,” Liam said. “From the bathroom.”

Louis crinkled his nose but got up and left the room. He returned a few moments later and held the bar out for them all to inspect. He gave it a long lick before making a face and throwing it into the bin. He hastily wiped at his tongue with a tissue, causing the other boys to all laugh. Harry wordlessly handed him the bottle of vodka which Louis took gratefully.

“Alright, that was disgusting,” Louis said, setting the bottle down on the ground in front of him. “Harry, truth or dare?”

“Dare,” Harry replied, not breaking his gaze from Louis’ own.

“I dare you to sing _I’m a little teapot_ in nothing but your underwear,” Louis said. “And you have to do the actions, too.”

Harry stood and quickly undressed, completing the dare with ease, much to the other boys’ amusement. Harry grinned and sat back down after he pulled his clothes back on. He grabbed the bottle from Louis to take another sip. He felt pleasantly warm inside and very giggly happy. The other boys all were smiling too and Harry wanted to tell them that he loved them all.

“Harry, you twat, you’re speaking out loud,” Zayn said sounding amused. “We know you love us.”

Harry grinned back at Zayn and reached over to pat his leg. 

“Wait, wait,” Louis said. “We need privacy for the next dare I have in mind!” 

Louis closed his eyes and produced a force field. Harry watched as it expanded to fit against all of the walls, the floor and the ceiling in the room. It covered the windows and the door and shimmered the hazy blue it usually did before turning completely invisible. 

“There!” Louis said proudly. “No one can hear us, either.”

“You sure?” Zayn asked, staring at Louis. 

“Go outside and test it, if you want, I’ll create a door for you,” Louis replied. Zayn, to Harry’s surprise got up and headed for the door. Louis focused and Zayn was able to step through the force field. “Don’t close the bedroom door, either, just leave it open and tell me if you can hear anything.”

Zayn stepped out completely, leaving the bedroom door open. 

“Yell as loud as you can,” Louis said in general to everyone else.

All four boys started to yell and shout in Zayn’s direction. Zayn looked bored and after a moment, Louis focused so his force field would let Zayn back into the room. 

“Well?” Louis prompted when Zayn sat down on the floor again.

“I heard nothing,” Zayn replied. He leaned over and bumped his fist against Louis’ who smiled proudly. 

“Alright, let’s make this a little more interesting,” Niall said as he set the bottle back on the floor. They were all easily pleasantly buzzed and Harry felt tingles in his toes from the alcohol. Even though he hated drinking vodka straight, it was better than nothing. 

Niall started the game off, daring Liam to give Louis a lap dance to a song on Harry’s iPod. Harry had tried not to stare too much as Liam’s hips grinded on Louis’ lap and in his face. As the song ended, Louis reached into his wallet, pulled out a ten pound note and tucked it into the waistband of Liam’s trousers, making Liam flush heavily.

Liam turned on Harry, who gave him a dopey smile and said he chose truth.

“If you could have anyone of our powers for a day, who’s would it be and what would you do?” Liam asked.

“I’d have Louis’ powers,” Harry replied, his words slurring a little. “And I’d walk around naked and invisible and work out in the gym naked because I could. I want to be naked now.”

Harry tugged at his jumped and pulled it over his head, feeling decidedly warm. He grabbed the hem of his shirt and threw it away once he had taken it off. He went for the belt on his trousers but the other boys stopped him.

“Take your turn, Harry,” Liam said.

Harry nodded and focused on Zayn. “Zaynie,” he said slowly. “Dare or truth?”

“Dare,” Zayn replied. 

Harry bit his lip and thought about what he could dare Zayn to do. “Oh!” he said excitedly. “I dare you to… to… I dare you to do a handstand and do a shot of vodka.”

Zayn groaned but did the dare anyway. He spilled more than half of the shot down his face, some of it going into his nose, causing Harry to laugh happily. Zayn wiped his face off and rounded on Louis, who surprisingly chose truth.

“Is there anyone in this school that you fancy?” Zayn asked.

Harry blinked and looked at Louis. “Yes, there is,” Louis replied. 

Zayn grinned at him widely and Louis flipped him off. Niall chose dare when Louis asked him and he dared Niall to act like an ape for one full minute, which caused Niall to jump around the room, scratch at his arse and even pick at the hair on Zayn’s head as he pretended to eat from Zayn’s scalp. Zayn batted him away and Niall fell over laughing, grinning from ear to ear.

Louis’ next dare was to turn invisible and knock on Nick’s door three times in fifteen minutes. Nick had been sleeping soundly and had looked quite annoyed when he opened the door to see no one else there. Each time Nick got up, he got grumpier and grumpier and Harry had to hide his face in Zayn’s shirt to stop from laughing out loud. He knew that Nick was going to be pissed off the next day but it was worth it, in his mind, to see Nick’s disgruntled face every time he opened the door to see no one standing there. 

They kept creating silly dares for each other until Niall asked Liam who he thought about when he had a wank. Liam had flushed bright red and said he didn’t want to answer. He ended up running through the corridor on the floor below, butt naked, yelling out that he loved Michael Jackson, with the other boys laughing in his wake.

“God, Li, your arse is so perky,” Louis commented once Liam pulled his clothes back on. 

“Thank you,” Liam replied, sitting back down on the floor in Harry and Louis’ room. They passed the bottle around once more and Harry yawned widely. 

“Aww, looks like the little baby is getting sleepy,” Niall teased. 

“Shut up,” Harry mumbled. He leaned heavily against Louis’ bed and yawned again. 

“Louis, truth or dare?” Liam asked.

“Truth,” Louis replied. Harry opened his eyes again and focused on Louis. 

“What was in the envelope Niall gave you tonight?” Liam asked.

Louis froze and Harry’s eyes widened. “Accounts,” he replied coolly. “Harry, truth or dare?”

“Truth,” Harry said, blinking at Louis.

“What’s the weirdest sex dream you’ve ever had?” 

Harry hummed and yawned again. “I dreamt I had sex with Princess Leia once.”

Zayn snorted. “That’s not weird, mate,” he said.

“It is, I don’t even like boobs,” Harry protested. “I was thirteen and I cried afterwards.”

Louis burst out laughing and Harry felt warmth flood through him at the sound. “Alright, we’ll let you have that one.”

Harry grinned and yawned again. Niall did the same and he declared that he was taking over Harry’s bed. They all followed his lead, deciding that sleep was necessary. Harry kicked off his trousers and glanced at Louis who was on the other side of his bed, undressing as well. Louis nodded at him once and Harry grinned. He climbed into the bed next to Louis and immediately curled around him. 

Louis lowered the force field around the entire room and focused until it was completely gone. Harry watched, fascinated, as it moved in front of his eyes. He turned his attention back to Louis who passed him a bottle of water. Louis uncapped one of his own and nodded at Harry.

“Drink,” Louis instructed and Harry immediately complied. He drank the entire bottle, watching Louis as he did the same. 

“I need to pee,” Harry said after a few moments. Louis groaned as Harry got out of the bed and said that he needed to as well because of Harry. Harry laughed and they both headed to the toilets.

Once they were back in their room, they climbed into Louis’ bed again and Harry settled on his side, facing Louis. Louis bit his lip and produced another force field, cocooning them in its protectiveness. 

“Lou?” Harry asked. Louis looked up at him and Harry’s breath hitched. Louis’ eyes looked gorgeous, he thought. There wasn’t much light in the room but Harry could see them clearly. He bit his lip and tried not to say everything he was thinking. “Are you mad at me?”

“Of course not, baby cakes,” Louis replied softly and Harry smiled at the affectionate nickname. He loved whenever Louis got all soft and cuddly with him like this; it made him feel closer to Louis. Louis reached up and stroked a hand through Harry’s curls. Harry immediately leaned into the touch. 

“Okay,” he said. If Louis said he wasn’t mad at him, Harry would believe him. 

If Harry could stay like this forever, he would be happy. He pressed in close to Louis’ side and wrapped around him as best as he could. Their legs slotted together comfortably and Harry wondered, not for the first time, what it would be like to do this with Louis in a non-platonic way. He wanted to tell Louis how he felt but he knew it wasn’t the right time. Louis had proved that much by the way he had reacted today. Harry wanted Louis to be happy, no matter what, and if he could be the cause of that happiness, then he’d be the luckiest man in the world. 

Harry didn’t doubt his feelings for Louis. He knew that one day, if it was a few days from now, or a few years, that he and Louis would end up together. He just had to wait for it to be the right time, no matter how long that took.

“Hey, Lou?” Harry asked a while later. He knew Louis was still awake as he was still stroking Harry’s scalp with soft, sure movements of his fingers.

“Yeah?” Louis said softly, his fingers pressing a little harder into Harry’s scalp.

“I love when you do that,” Harry replied. “It feels nice.”

“Good,” Louis said. He kept scratching at Harry’s scalp until Harry fell asleep under his careful, tender touch, pressed into Louis’ side as tightly and as closely as he could physically be.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warnings: mentions of blood.

Chapter Six  
 _Louis_  


It was only Tuesday and already Louis was drowning in homework. They had a test coming up in Maths on Thursday and it seemed like their teachers were overcompensating for the fact that they weren’t going to be at the school at _all_ on the Friday, thanks to their trip to the museum, but Louis was certain that they didn’t have to pile on so much homework at the start of the week. He had finished off his History homework first, since it was the easiest to get out of the way but he couldn’t make sense of his English work at all. He put it aside to wait for Zayn to help him and sighed. He picked up his iPad that was tucked into his side to play a round of Angry Birds instead, eager to get his frustration out on the little piggies.

“Why are you sighing?” Harry asked from where he was pressed against Louis’ chest, sitting between his legs on Louis’ bed. Harry had his laptop on his lap and was typing out something on it. Louis wasn’t sure if it was homework or if he was emailing his sister. With Harry it could be either or even both at the same time.

Louis rested his iPad on top of Harry’s head and closed his eyes briefly. “Homework,” he said simply. “I hate everything.”

Harry closed his laptop and pushed it onto the bed next to their legs and took the iPad off his head. He switched it off and set it on top of his closed laptop, making sure they were both secure at the end of the bed. “C’mon, it’s not that bad,” he said, turning a little, his shoulder pressing into Louis’ sternum. 

“It _is_ though,” Louis protested dramatically, letting one of his hands fall to Harry’s curls. It was as comforting for himself as it was for Harry to card his fingers through the soft locks of hair, letting them twirl around his fingers. 

“Let me help?” Harry offered and Louis couldn’t say no to those gorgeous green eyes staring up at him with all of the hope in the world. Harry’s eyes would be his undoing, that Louis was certain of.

Louis reached for the discarded text book and opened it to where he was stuck. They worked together for a solid hour and Louis finally felt like it was all beginning to make sense. He scribbled notes furiously in his notebook while he remembered it all, hoping that it would still make sense when he looked over it later. 

“See, you’re getting it,” Harry said softly. Louis smiled and ran his fingers through Harry’s hair again and let out a pleased hum. He tugged ever so slightly and Harry’s eyes fluttered closed. He felt a jolt of something go through him. That was a new reaction from Harry, he thought. 

Louis thought that it seemed like he and Harry were a couple but neither of them had made the first move in asking the other out and they certainly hadn’t kissed yet. Louis wanted both but there were times where it seemed like Harry only just wanted to be friends. It confused Louis a lot. He just wished there was a clear sign to help him find out what Harry wanted, if he did want to be _more_ or if he just wanted to be friends. Friends who, admittedly, slept in the same bed at least three nights a week. It was very confusing but Louis got to spend time like this with Harry, with Harry in his arms, his warm back pressed against Louis’ chest as he did his homework. It was comfortable and familiar and Louis liked that.

All of the boys were quite affectionate, though, so Louis didn’t want to overstep the mark when it was just Harry being Harry. He had seen Harry curl up with Niall on more than one occasion, falling asleep with his head in Niall’s lap, Niall’s hand in his hair. Admittedly, that had sparked a bout of jealousy in Louis but he would be a hypocrite if he said anything as he’d fallen asleep spooning Zayn too many times to count. 

He had still been unsure on how to take Liam, who seemed to take everything way too seriously, but since Louis had started at the school, their bond had slowly grown. He still thought Liam needed to loosen up, to not care about every single detail and make sure that everything was perfect and followed a schedule, but Liam was getting there. It might have been their drinking and bonding at the weekend that loosened Liam up even more, or it could have just been him finally getting used to Louis and his obnoxiously loud ways, but even he seemed happier. It had made Louis’ night when Liam had fallen asleep on him during their movie on Sunday night. Liam drooled a little on his shoulder and Louis had ribbed him endlessly about it but it felt like that final barrier had been crossed. He was one of the boys now.

Harry in particular liked to touch people a lot. He especially loved to cuddle and would wedge himself into Louis’ personal space more often than Louis could keep count. Often, Louis found himself squashed between Niall and Harry, one on each side. Their breath on his neck and their legs winding around his own. Louis figured it was because he was older, and admittedly more handsome than the rest of the boys that made them want to touch him so much. He had mentioned this to Zayn one time but Zayn had snorted at Louis and told him that under no certain circumstances was Louis prettier than he was. Louis had tackled Zayn to the ground at that comment, tickling him mercilessly, and figured that the touching and seeking comfort wasn’t just the boys to him but him to the boys as well.

It had taken a little while to get used to sleeping next to someone but Harry made an excellent little spoon, Louis thought. His arms fit perfectly around Harry’s middle, fitting together like puzzle pieces. Even though Harry was growing rapidly, they still fit together perfectly, right down to Harry’s overly large hand holding Louis’ as they slept.

Even with Harry resting his weight against Louis’ chest as they worked together was comforting for Louis in ways that he never expected it to be. Harry was a calming presence and Louis knew it wasn’t just his empathic ability that made it so, especially because Harry’s powers didn’t work on him. It was just Harry’s easy going personality that made everyone comfortable around him.

“Read to me?” Harry asked once Louis had finished his homework. 

“Sure,” Louis replied with a nod. Harry loaded up a book on Louis’ iPad and passed it to him. He settled back against Louis chest comfortably and draped a soft, warm blanket over them, tucking it up under his chin. Louis smiled to himself and started reading to Harry, one arm curled across Harry’s torso protectively. 

He was sure that Harry was almost asleep when their bedroom door opened. Niall wandered in, carrying a large box. He plonked it down on Harry’s bed since it was the one that was free and he shot them a look.

“Whatcha reading?” he asked. 

“Mockingjay,” Louis replied. 

“What’s in the box, Niall?” Harry asked sleepily, burrowing back into Louis’ chest.

Niall grinned and joined them on the bed, tugging the blanket so it was covering him as well. “Presents.”

“Presents?” Harry repeated, lighting up like a Christmas tree.

Niall nodded. “Lemme text Payno and Zayn to get up here.” He pulled out his phone and quickly tapped on the touch screen. 

Louis stroked at Harry’s hair once before slipping his hand underneath the blanket to rest on Harry’s chest. Harry automatically linked their fingers together and turned his head ever so slightly to give Louis a small smile.

“Can we have our presents now?” Harry asked after a few minutes.

“No, you gotta wait,” Niall replied, poking Harry’s leg over the blanket. “Budge up, I want to snuggle too.”

Harry let out a pathetic whine and shuffled over, elbowing Louis in the ribs as he did. Louis grunted but moved as well. He decided that he needed a bigger bed, especially if they were all insistent on cuddling on it with him. The beds were big enough for two people to sleep comfortably but three or even five people on the one bed was pushing it, Louis thought. 

“Keep reading, Tommo,” Niall said, pressing in close to Louis’ side.

Louis huffed and picked up his iPad again, continuing where he had left off with Harry, reading the words on the screen. He had only managed to read two pages by the time Liam and Zayn wandered into the room. Louis looked up, catching the matching looks of amusement on their faces before they both climbed onto Louis’ bed as well.

“If any of you hit my balls, I will kill you,” Louis warned, shuffling once again to accommodate the mass of teenage limbs that were precariously near his crotch and his face simultaneously. 

“I’ll protect your balls, Louis,” Harry said sincerely. Louis snorted and the others laughed loudly.

“We know you will, Harry,” Zayn said cheekily. 

Harry flushed, his cheeks stained pink as they all shuffled on the bed to get comfortable. 

“Niall’s text said something about presents?” Liam asked once they’d all settled. 

“Oh, yeah,” Niall said. He glanced over at the box on Harry’s bed, a forlorn expression on his face. “But it’s all the way over _there_.”

“Well, get it then,” Louis replied, poking Niall in the arm. 

“But I’m comfy!” Niall protested loudly, poking Louis back. Louis squirmed to get out of his reach but ended up too close to the edge of the bed for his liking. He was sure that it was only his legs locked around Harry’s hips from where he was still pressed against Louis’ chest that kept him from falling off.

“So lazy,” Louis said. He rolled his eyes at Niall and bit his lip before throwing a bubble like force field around the box and manipulating the energy to bring the box over to them. Everyone was watching as the box merrily floated over to them in the force field. 

“That was sick!” Niall exclaimed. “When did you learn to do that?”

“I’ve been practicing,” Louis said. “I figured if I can create a force field around an object in mid-air, why can’t I pull that force field closer to me? Or even push it away. Turns out I can.” He lowered the force field and the box dropped from the air, landing heavily on Niall’s lap. Niall winced as it landed on him but just ripped off the tape holding the box closed.

“Check these out,” he said, holding up the first item out of the box.

“What is it?” Harry asked.

“These are our super suits!” Niall replied excitedly. The first one was red and purple in colour and Louis thought it should have looked ridiculous but it didn’t. “This one’s yours, Harry.”

Harry reached out for the suit and grinned as he pulled it into his lap. Louis reached over Harry to feel the fabric between his fingers. 

“It feels weird,” Louis said.

Niall nodded. “I know,” he replied. “They’re made from unstable molecules so they adapt to your body’s needs.”

“So mine won’t burst into flames, then?” Liam asked as Niall reached into the box and pulled out a steel grey coloured suit. 

“Nope!” Niall replied with a wide grin. “The suits react to individual needs. It keeps the cool stuff cool and the hot stuff hot, plus, they adapt to our powers. Which means Louis’ will turn invisible with him, Liam’s will be _very_ flame resistant, Zayn’s won’t let in the cold breeze when he creates a storm, Harry’s will adapt to whatever he absorbs and mine will be durable enough not to wear out when I run.”

“Wicked,” Louis said. He took the offered blue suit for himself and turned his hand invisible to touch the fabric. It disappeared from sight and Louis grinned. “My junk is going to be so constricted in this, though…”

Zayn coughed. “I designed them so your _junk_ will breathe and you’ll have room there.”

“You designed these?” Louis asked, turning the suit and his hand visible again.

“Of course I did,” Zayn said. “Why do you think I needed your measurements a couple of weeks ago?”

“I dunno,” Louis replied with a shrug. “I thought you just wanted to cop a feel.” He winked at Zayn who just smiled and shook his head. 

“Lou,” Zayn started. “If I wanted to do that, I would’ve done it _ages_ ago. You’re just not my type.”

“How dare you, Malik, I’m _everyone’s_ type,” Louis sniffed. 

“Sure you are,” Zayn deadpanned. 

Zayn’s suit was a gorgeous purple and grey colour, and Louis figured it would make him look as stunning as ever. All of the suits had two colours to them, Louis realised on closer inspection. His and Liam’s suits were the only ones with different shades of the one colour but Louis liked his like that. Niall’s own suit was gold and green, the tones surprisingly working well together. 

“Can we try them on?” Harry asked.

“Go on then, Hazza, put on a show for us!” Louis encouraged.

Harry smiled and got off the bed, stripping down to his underwear before pulling the suit on. Louis zipped him up and forced his hands away from Harry’s body. The suit felt way too good underneath his hands.

“It’s a lot lighter than I was expecting,” Harry said as he moved his limbs around, doing various stretches and poses that made Louis fix his gaze firmly on Harry’s body. He stretched his arms above his head and Louis almost whimpered. He shook his head and tore his gaze away to catch Zayn looking at him strangely. Louis licked his lips and turned his attention back to Niall who was talking about the suits again.

“The material is really the best thing to work with,” Niall explained. Louis’ mind trailed off as Harry dropped to the floor and started doing push ups. He let his gaze trail down Harry’s back, watching appreciatively as the material rippled and moved with every muscle of Harry’s. 

“I really like this,” Harry said as he stood again, putting his hands on his hips. Louis coughed awkwardly and tore his gaze away from Harry’s lithe body, trying not to stare at his crotch.

Niall beamed. “We should wear these to any danger room training sessions we do from now on,” he said. “It’ll be better for us than those leather jumpsuits.”

“Agreed,” Zayn said, leaning back into Liam, who had been listening to Niall with rapt attention. “Those leather suits were the worst.”

“I still liked them,” Harry protested weakly.

“You were the only one, Haz,” Zayn replied with an eye roll. 

Harry pouted but climbed back onto the bed. Louis immediately wrapped his arm around Harry as he settled back against him. The suit felt different to touch rather than Harry’s comfortable clothing but Louis figured he’d better get used to it, they’d all be wearing the suits more often than not.

“I can order a few more when we’re sure they’re good,” Niall said. “You know, just in case.”

“Back up suits,” Harry commented with a smile. “I like that.”

“Anyway, I’m going to love you and leave you,” Louis said, shifting out from underneath Harry who protested through noises alone. “Liam and I are going on a very secret and very sexy rendezvous and you’re not invited.”

“I… we’re _not_ …” Liam protested weakly.

“Don’t deny our love, Li!” Louis said, reaching over for Liam’s hands. He tugged him off the bed, astutely ignoring the glare Zayn had directed at him. He pulled Liam close and slipped his hand precariously low down his back before smacking his arse once, making Liam jump slightly, an utterly embarrassed look on his face, his cheeks stained pink. “Bye, boys!”

Liam shot the boys a helpless look and Louis just winked before leading Liam from the room. Louis kept his hand in Liam’s as they got into the lift at the end of their floor. He pushed the button to go down to the garage and waited.

“Here we go,” Louis said when the doors opened a few moments later. He tugged Liam’s hand, who followed immediately. Louis fished a hand in his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. “Get in,” he instructed, unlocking the car with a push of a button.

Liam did and Louis started Zayn’s Ranger Rover and pulled out of the garage with ease. Once they had driven for a few minutes, Louis pulled over onto the side of the road and turned the car off. 

“Ready for your first driving lesson?” he asked, turning to face Liam a little more.

Liam paled and shook his head. “No,” he replied. “I’m really, really not.”

“Well shit,” Louis said. “You’re going to have to learn, Li. Harry’s already driving loads and Niall’s been driving for a few months now, you’re the last of the lads to drive.”

“I know,” Liam protested weakly. 

“C’mon, it’ll be good,” Louis said. He unclipped his seat belt and got out of the car. He walked around to the passenger side where Liam was still sitting. “Li. You’ll be fine.”

Liam nodded and took his seat belt off too. He slid out of the car and Louis climbed into the spot he had just vacated. He put his seat belt on and waited for Liam to do the same. 

“Okay, first things first,” Louis said. “Adjust your chair and the mirrors to make sure they’re good for you to see.”

Liam nodded and Louis explained how to use the buttons to adjust everything after he had moved the seat back a little to accommodate his legs. Louis then went through how to use the indicators, the windscreen wipers and explained all of the functions of Zayn’s car. Once he was satisfied that Liam understood it all, he told Liam to start the car.

“No, I think that’s enough for today,” Liam protested. He dropped his hand to release the seat belt but Louis quickly put his hand over Liam’s, stopping him. 

“Liam, you have _so_ much confidence when it comes to everything else, why not driving?” Louis asked. 

Liam fell silent and adjusted the hood of his grey hoodie he was wearing. “Driving is just… It’s a huge responsibility,” he paused and shuffled to face Louis better. “When I was a kid, I always wanted to be a superhero, you know? Before I knew I was a mutant, before I knew my family were mutants. I liked the idea of saving someone. It’s one of the reasons I wanted to be a fireman.” He paused and fiddled with the strings on his hood, twirling one around his finger. Louis reached over and took Liam’s hand in his own, lacing their fingers together. He gave them a comforting squeeze and waited for Liam to finish speaking. “And now I’m sixteen and I’m this pre-superhero and it’s _scary_. I don’t think I realised the full implications of what that meant. I can choose to do good with my abilities, become an X-Man, save lives, the world, or whatever, but then I can choose not to, as well. And I become just another regular person but I can heat popcorn in my hand without using a microwave.

“I know it’s just driving to you but to me it’s another responsibility. It’s another way that people can get hurt, people that I might not be able to save and that scares me,” Liam finished, his gaze on their joined hands.

Louis loosened his hand from their joint hold and reached over to hug Liam tightly. “I love you, Li,” he said softly. They held each other for a few long moments before pulling away. “I’m going to share something with you now.”

Liam nodded. “Okay.”

“I was in a car accident before I came to the school,” Louis started. “Like a _massive_ accident. I…” he swallowed thickly and took a deep breath. “I can’t tell you the details because it… It’s _hard_.”

“Lou, you don’t have to say anything,” Liam said reassuringly. “Honestly, you don’t.”

“No, I need to,” Louis replied. “Just don’t say anything to the others and don’t–” Louis paused and looked up at Liam. “Don’t ask for more details because I won’t be able to give them to you.”

Liam nodded. “Okay.”

“I didn’t think I’d be able to drive again,” Louis continued. “But you just carry on. I was lucky, I walked away unscathed because of my abilities. Others weren’t so lucky. I guess having a fear of something is good because you know that you’re scared for a reason but having that fear hold you back from doing great things seems a little silly to me. I’m sorry, I’m not making sense.”

“No, you are,” Liam assured him. “H-how bad was your accident?”

Louis liked his lips. “Pretty bad,” he replied. “But now I have these fancy new powers where I can create force fields around _anything_ and protect it. So even if you somehow manage to crash into something, even though there’s _nothing_ for miles, yay Scotland, I’ll protect you. Alright?”

Liam nodded, a smile playing on his lips. “Alright.”

“Good,” Louis said. “Now, start the car, put your foot on the brake and get ready to slowly accelerate.” Liam did as he was instructed, taking a few deep breaths first. “You’re lucky that this car is a beast and an automatic,” Louis continued. “If you can drive this, you’ll be able to drive anything automatic ever. When you get the hang of this, I’ll teach you how to drive a manual… Not that you’ll need much teaching.” He winked at Liam who snorted.

“God, Lou, you’re so vulgar,” Liam commented. 

“Shut up and drive, Payno, we’re doing this the Tommo way.”

The car jerked a few times with Liam hitting the brake hard but Louis gritted his teeth and focused on keeping his force field from automatically surrounding them. It wouldn’t do Liam any good to think that Louis wanted to protect them straight away. Louis gave Liam a lot of encouragement, praising him when he travelled a few metres without slamming his foot down on the breaks. 

“Easy there, Liam,” Louis said as Liam hit the brakes yet again. Where they were, was hardly any chance for traffic. They were still close enough to the school that it would only take a ten or fifteen minute drive to get back but Liam’s nerves seemed to be getting the better of him. “Why don’t you sing with me?” he suggested.

Liam’s grip tightened on the steering wheel. “S-sing?” he asked, his tongue darting out to wet his lips.

“Yeah,” Louis replied with a nod. “C’mon, let’s sing something. It’ll take your mind off your nerves.”

“Alright,” Liam said. “…I can’t think of a song.”

“It’s okay. I’ll start, you just join in,” Louis replied. He started to sing the first song that popped into his head, which happened to be _Somewhere Over The Rainbow_ because he and Harry had just watched _Wizard of Oz_ a few days beforehand. 

Louis had barely got passed the first verse when Liam joined in. His voice was shaky at first and his grip on the steering wheel hadn’t loosened any but he was taking control and was singing along with Louis until they were both grinning from ear to ear, their voices getting louder and louder with each note.

“Hey, Li,” Louis said once the song had finished. “Guess what?”

“What?” Liam asked.

“You just drove half a mile without hitting the brakes once,” Louis pointed out.

Liam’s mouth dropped open before he smiled widely. “Wow,” he replied.

“Granted you were going as slow as a granny driving but still, you did it,” Louis added with a cheeky grin. “C’mon, hot stuff; let’s pick up the pace a little before we head back.”

“Alright,” Liam agreed. “Lou?”

“Yeah?”

“Can we sing something _other_ than _Wizard of Oz_ songs this time?”

Louis reached over and playfully punched Liam in the arm. It was well worth the car jerking a little as Liam tried to lean away from him. “Prat,” Louis said fondly.

~*~

“They’re coming!”

Louis felt Zayn tackle him before he even saw his friend appear in front of him. Zayn wrapped himself around Louis, clinging onto him, excitedly chanting ‘they’re coming!’ over and over. It took a few minutes to get Zayn to settle properly.

“Who’s coming?” Louis asked, resting his hand on Zayn’s shoulder.

“My sisters!” Zayn replied excitedly. “They’re going to meet me tomorrow at the museum.”

“Zayn, that’s ace,” Louis said. He hugged Zayn tightly, happy that he had finally been able to get a hold of his sisters. Zayn had told them all the week before that he wanted to meet his sisters while they were in London at the Natural History Museum. At first they hadn’t been allowed but Louis figured that his sisters eventually wore down their mum into letting them go. Zayn had gone through various stages of anger every time he got a message from one of them explaining that they couldn’t meet him. 

“I’m so excited, Lou,” Zayn said. He kept his arms around Louis’ middle but stepped back enough so they could talk. “I haven’t seen the girls in so long.”

Louis opened his mouth to say something but Liam walked into the room a moment later. He and Louis had planned to do a work out together and Louis had arrived at the gym before Liam, as he had needed to finish off some homework first. 

“Liam!” Zayn cried out. Liam barely looked up before Zayn was literally jumping into his arms. Liam’s reflexes were fast and he caught Zayn underneath his thighs, holding him tightly. Liam wavered a little but gained his footing quickly. “Li, they’re coming!”

Liam’s face broke into a wide grin and Zayn surged forwards, wrapping his arms even tighter around Liam’s shoulders, burying his face in Liam’s neck. Louis smiled and turned away so they could have their private moment. 

He stepped onto the treadmill he always used and adjusted the settings so he could start his walk. It had been raining all day so the ground outside wasn’t in the best condition for Louis to have a decent run. He didn’t mind using the treadmills but being outside running felt better, like he was free, in a way, the earth under his feet and the wind whipping his face. He didn’t get that in the gym, he just got the steady pounding of his feet against the conveyor belt.

Liam and Zayn were still talking in the background, so Louis slipped in his headphones and started the machine. He started off with a jog to build up to a run. His music was on shuffle and after the first few songs, it skipped to a track that Harry had undoubtedly put on for him. Louis grinned to himself as he jogged along to the beat of the song, letting it overcome his senses. He increased his speed until he was running at a steady pace, his heart thumping against his ribcage, sweat covering most of his body. It was gross but he knew it was worth it. The burn in his calves felt good and Louis kept going, pushing himself to go farther than he usually did.

He let his thoughts wander, not really thinking of anything in particular until he started thinking about their trip to the museum the next day. It had been a while since Louis had travelled so far in such a large vehicle. He was determined to not let it get to him, of course. He could push aside any anxieties he had and focus on the fact that he was going to be in The Natural History Museum. 

After telling Liam a little about his secret, Louis felt both better and even more burdened than before. He had wanted to share the story with the boys but there had never been a right time. It had just slipped out when Louis was trying to comfort Liam. He had been worried that Liam would look at him differently and treat him differently. So far, none of that had happened but Liam was a bit of a worrier and Louis knew it was inevitable before Liam wanted Louis to share his pain. 

Louis couldn’t do that, though. He didn’t like being vulnerable. He layered himself with sarcasm and jokes just so he didn’t have to share the deepest parts of him. Parts that he wasn’t sure _anyone_ would want to know about. Parts that would make people look at him differently, treat him differently and not just in sympathy, either. 

Louis shook his head and took another deep breath, his lungs burning from how much he had ran already. The burn felt good, it kept him grounded and reminded him of exactly where he was.

A tap on his shoulder startled Louis and his force field immediately surrounded him as he toppled off the treadmill, his body suspended in the middle of the circular force field, stopping him from hitting the ground. His breathing was laboured as he glanced up to see Liam looking at him with concern. 

“Shit, Lou, sorry,” Liam apologised, worry creased across his brow.

Louis grunted and lowered his force field, letting himself drop onto the floor with a soft thud. He stood and rubbed at his bottom where he landed and glared at Liam. “You couldn’t have waited?” he asked, trying to get his breath back.

Liam bit his lip. “Your powers were acting up,” he said. “Your force field came out and kind of shut off all the power in the room. I had to do something.”

Louis looked around, noticing for the first time that the room was in semi-darkness, half of the lights above them not on at all. He frowned and crossed to the treadmill that was next to his and pushed the button to turn it on but nothing happened. He pushed the button again but still nothing worked. “Shit. I had no idea.”

Worry was still evident on Liam’s face. “Are you okay?” he asked. “There has to be a reason that happened.” 

“Leave it, Li,” Louis said as he grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off his face. He let the towel hang across the back of his neck as he picked up his bottle of water to take a long drink from. He could feel Liam staring at him still but he resolutely ignored it. 

“Louis,” Liam said softly, putting his hand on Louis’ shoulder comfortingly. “If this is about the other day…”

“It isn’t,” Louis replied, turning to face Liam. “It’s not any of that.”

“Okay,” Liam said, doubt clear in his tone. “If you want to talk, you know I’m here.”

Louis huffed. “I do,” he said. “And I appreciate it but I told you I can’t give you any details.”

Liam nodded. “Alright.”

“I’d better go find that technopath to fix this,” Louis said.

“I’ll go,” Liam said. “I know her and Raven doesn’t like to be interrupted when she’s working. Plus you need a shower. _Desperately_.”

Louis nodded. “Thanks,” he said. He didn’t miss the look Liam gave him as he left. He felt bad just snubbing Liam like that but he had told Liam that he couldn’t share details for a reason. He figured he’d make it up to Liam later but he did need to shower and he needed to get his mind off everything.

The showers were thankfully free when Louis entered them. He stripped his clothes methodically and stepped in, letting the hot spray cover him. He sighed and closed his eyes, putting his face under the spray. It was soothing to do something so familiar, so mundane. It helped Louis forget for a while. He washed himself thoroughly and stayed under the spray for a while longer, letting the water warm him up.

By the time he had finished in the shower, Niall wandered in to have his own. He smiled at Louis and undressed before stepping into a stall. Louis gathered his things and headed for his and Harry’s room. He pushed the door open and kicked it closed with a foot as he walked into the room. 

“No, it’s just Louis.”

Louis jumped a little when he heard Harry’s deep voice speak. He glanced over to see Harry sitting on his bed, holding his phone out in front of him.

“Facetime with Gem,” Harry said by way of an explanation. Louis nodded and went about putting this things away a little more quietly. He could hear Harry talking to Gemma in the background, her voice sounding a little tinny on the phone’s speakers. “Come say hi.”

Louis glanced over. Harry had a hopeful look on his face and Louis found himself nodding. He grabbed a grey beanie and shoved it down over his head before he crossed the room to Harry’s bed. He climbed up on the bed and Harry immediately shuffled to accommodate him, slipping his arm around Louis’ middle. 

“Hi, Gemma,” Louis said, smiling at her face on the screen of Harry’s phone.

“ _Hi, Louis_ ,” Gemma returned. 

Louis easily slipped into their conversation, interjecting his own thoughts every now and then. Harry’s arm was comforting around Louis’ waist, a heavy, warm pressure there, his hand splayed on Louis’ hip. 

“ _I wish I could meet you guys tomorrow_ ,” Gemma said. “ _But I’ve got to prepare for exams starting soon_.”

Louis made a sad face at her. “Exams are the worst,” he replied.

“Take the phone, I have to pee,” Harry said, passing the phone to Louis to hold. Louis accepted it from Harry, their fingers brushing as he did. He gave Harry a small smile and subconsciously bit his lip. “Back soon!” he said cheerfully to Gemma, shoving his face in the camera line before disappearing from the room.

“ _Earth to Louis_ …” Gemma said and Louis’ attention snapped back to her.

“Huh?” 

Gemma laughed loudly, her smile filling the screen of Harry’s phone. “ _You two are so cute_.”

Louis shook his head. “No, I… Shut up.”

Gemma just laughed again and Louis settled back against the pillows that were indented with Harry’s body shape from leaning against them. “ _So have you asked him out yet_?”

“What? No! I… No.” Gemma was evil, Louis decided. She was having far too much fun at his expense and he didn’t like it. 

“ _C’mon, Louis_ ,” she said fondly. “ _It’s not half obvious you’re both into each other_.”

“Well, he is quite fit,” Louis replied. “But that’s not the point. Let’s talk about you. How’s studying going?”

Gemma groaned and the camera shook as Gemma rearranged herself on her bed. “ _Exams are the worst. I can’t believe this is only my first year as well. Kill me now, Louis, just do it_.”

“I’m pretty sure Harry would hate me forever if I killed his favourite sister,” Louis replied. 

“ _I’m his_ only _sister_ ,” Gemma pointed out.

“And yet you’re still his favourite,” Louis teased. Gemma rolled her eyes at him.

“ _Between studying and wedding stuff, I’m a little swamped_ ,” Gemma replied. “ _I’m sick of trying on bridesmaid dresses every other weekend. Don’t tell Harry I said that, though_.”

“My lips are sealed,” Louis vowed. 

“ _I’m really looking forward to the wedding, though_ ,” Gemma continued. “ _Are you going to come? Mum really wants to meet you_.”

“Er…” Louis trailed off. “I didn’t know I was invited?”

“ _Of course you are, silly_ ,” Gemma replied. “ _Hasn’t Harry asked you yet_?”

Louis blinked and picked at one of the pillowcases below his fingers. “No, he hasn’t said anything to me.”

Gemma hummed. “ _Strange_.”

“Yeah…” Louis muttered.

The bedroom door reopened and Harry walked in a moment later. He immediately settled into Louis’ side, swinging a leg over Louis’ own and making a face at the camera as he did so.

“ _Harry_ ,” Gemma said slowly. “ _Why haven’t you asked Louis if he’s coming to mum’s wedding yet_?”

Harry turned his gaze to Louis then back to the phone. “I forgot.”

Gemma made a face. “ _Useless little brother_.”

Harry poked his tongue out at her. “Am not!” he protested.

“ _And so childish too, H_ ,” Gemma teased. “ _Anyway, I have to go. I want to actually eat dinner tonight for once_.”

“Okay,” Harry said with a nod. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Gemma blew them both a kiss and they said their good byes before disconnecting the call. Harry shifted awkwardly to face Louis and sucked his bottom lip between his teeth.

“Do you want to come to my mum’s wedding?” he asked.

Louis grinned and poked Harry in his dimple. “I’d love to,” he replied. “It’ll be nice to meet your mum since you hardly ever shut up about her. Zayn said she’s fit. I want to see this for myself.”

Harry made a face. “She’s not… Zayn’s such a bastard.”

Louis laughed and ignored Harry. He put a finger to his chin, mock pondering. “I’ll have to work fast if I want to sweep her off her feet before the wedding starts, though… Since everyone’ll be there, we may as well get married straight away…”

“ _Lou_!” Harry whined, tackling Louis back onto his bed. His fingers worked fast against Louis’ ribs, tickling him mercilessly. Louis squealed loudly and squirmed underneath Harry’s fingers but Harry settled his full weight over Louis, effectively holding him down as he tickled. 

Louis’ loud laughter filled the room and he tried to bat Harry away as best as he could but Harry was relentless. Louis wheeze for breath, gasping to get enough oxygen in his lungs. Eventually Louis got his hands around Harry’s own and rolled them over. He grinned as he tickled Harry, who squirmed uncontrollably underneath him. Harry laughed loudly, his legs flailing on the bed behind Louis, trying to dislodge him. Louis clamped his thighs on the outside of Harry’s hips, locking them tight to stop Harry from moving but Harry was strong. They rolled off the bed, landing with a thump on the floor, Louis sprawled on top of Harry.

“Oops,” Harry got out, still giggling, trying to get his breath back. He looked up at Louis and reached up to push Louis’ beanie back on his head properly from where it was precariously hanging off. He kept his hand on Louis’ shoulder, their gazes locked together. 

“Hi,” Louis whispered, still smiling. The mood shifted instantly and Louis licked his lips. It would only be too easy for him to lean down and kiss Harry, whose gaze had flicked to Louis’ lips at the movement. Harry shifted underneath him, his hand squeezing Louis’ shoulder before slipping to the back of his neck, his fingers playing with the strands of Louis’ hair that weren’t captured by the beanie.

Their bedroom door opened and Louis immediately climbed off Harry. Niall wandered in a moment later. “It’s dinner time, you two,” he said. “Why are you on the floor?”

“Fell off the bed,” Louis said, getting to his feet. “We had a tickle fight which I _won_.”

“Yeah, you’re vicious when it comes to those,” Niall said. “I had bruises for a week after last time.”

Louis gave him a tight smile. “That’s because I’m the best.”

Harry stood up next and shifted awkwardly next to Louis. “What’s for dinner?” he asked, turning his attention to Niall.

“Tacos,” Niall replied. “I’m going to eat a dozen I’m so hungry. C’mon, let’s go!” 

Louis stuffed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie as he followed Niall from the room, Harry trailing behind him. He resolutely didn’t think about what had almost happened between them and wondered if Harry was doing the same.

~*~

On the day they were going on their trip to the museum, Louis woke up with an unsettled feeling in his stomach. He kept the feeling to himself, putting it down to nerves, though what he could be nervous about, he wasn’t sure.

After they had spent the night drinking and playing truth or dare, Louis felt closer to Harry, Niall, Liam and Zayn than he had ever before. It was though making fools of themselves in front of each other had somehow brought them closer. If Louis thought on it, he was sure that he could taste soap in his mouth still. He winced as he remembered the taste.

“C’mon, Louis,” Harry said as he re-entered their bedroom. “We’re going to be late.”

“Okay,” Louis said. He pocketed his wallet and followed Harry from the room. 

“You alright?” Harry asked as they walked down the corridor. 

“Just feeling a little off,” Louis replied. “Don’t know what it is, to be honest.”

Harry slipped his hand into Louis’ and gave a brief squeeze. “You’ll be fine once we get there,” he said reassuringly. Louis nodded and kept their hands joined until they got into the lift on their floor. He was glad that after their tickle fight, nothing had changed between them as he was afraid it would. Harry was still his lovely, caring and charming self and Louis was thankful for that. 

The other boys were already downstairs, waiting to go and Louis could just picture Nick’s face when they arrived late. Since their night of fun, Nick had had it out for Louis. Even though he couldn’t prove that it was Louis who had knocked on his door, Louis was the only student who had the ability to turn invisible. Nick obviously was discounting those that could teleport or who had super speed because he clearly hated Louis, though Louis still had no idea as to why. He had weird feelings when it came to Nick. He often felt like Nick was hitting on Harry but Harry was too oblivious to notice and too kind to say anything about his advances even if he _did_ realise. Nick was just creepy, in Louis’ opinion.

“Nice of you to join us, Louis,” Nick sneered at him. 

“Sorry we’re late,” Harry said. “I had to use the loo.”

“Alright, on the bus then,” Nick instructed, waving his clip board at them. Louis followed Harry onto the bus and down the aisle until they came to where Liam, Zayn, Niall and Ashley were all sitting.

Harry slipped into one of the seats and Louis sat down next to him. “This is going to be so much fun, I haven’t been to the museum in years,” Harry said.

“It’ll be something, alright,” Zayn replied.

After Zayn had found out that his sisters were definitely going to meet him, he had been in an exceptionally good mood for the rest of the week. Louis had agreed to cover for Zayn and Liam as much as he could but he doubted that Nick or Mrs Fitz, their other teacher chaperone, would mind too much if they found out that Zayn’s sisters were joining them. Louis didn’t know the full story but he knew that it was important for Zayn to see his sisters. Louis had been told that Zayn hadn’t seen his sisters in almost a year so Louis understood the desire that he had to see them.

The bus ride was slow to start with but they picked up speed after the first half an hour, much to Louis’ relief.

“I’m sure you’ll be fine once we get there,” Harry repeated his earlier words to Louis after they had been travelling for a while. Louis nodded and smiled at him.

“Yeah, I know,” Louis replied.

They had left rather early for Louis’ liking but Louis knew that it would take at least three hours for them to get to London, even with all of the awesome modifications the bus had. 

Thankfully, the three hours passed quickly with a movie playing and Niall forcing everyone to sing songs as loudly and as obnoxiously as they could. Even Louis started to feel better when Niall turned to him and told him that he had to sing along.

“Okay, kids,” Mrs Fitz said as the bus pulled into a stop in the museum car park. “We know you’re all excited to be here but we need to cover some ground rules before we go inside. First, no powers, okay? We don’t need any mishaps like the one from a couple of years ago when one of the students melted a piece of artwork because he got too close to it. He was lucky that it wasn’t an actual museum piece and was just a painting near the entrance.

“Secondly, don’t touch the displays,” Mrs Fitz continued. “There are signs for a reason.”

“Want to see how much stuff we can touch without getting caught?” Louis whispered to Harry, tuning out the rest of Mrs Fitz’s speech.

Harry grinned at him and nodded. “Yeah, okay,” he replied. 

Mrs Fitz’s voice flitted through to Louis’ ears again and he paid attention to the last of her instructions, including that they had to all meet up for lunch at noon sharp before continuing on their tour of the museum.

They all exited the bus and several satisfied sighs rang out as everyone stretched out their limbs. Louis wriggled his legs and followed the crowd inside, lagging near the back with Zayn, Liam, Niall and Harry.

“What time are your sisters meeting you?” Harry asked Zayn.

“At half ten,” Zayn replied. “Liam and I are going to leave the group about twenty past so we don’t miss them.”

“We’ve got you covered,” Niall said, slapping a hand onto Zayn’s back. Zayn shot him a grateful look that Niall returned fully.

They caught up to their group quickly, their tour guide giving them details of their first display. 

“I’m gonna touch that,” Louis whispered to Harry, reaching out to touch the first part of the display he could. He glanced around and gently caressed the display as subtly as possible.

Harry grinned at him and hastily did the same. “Done,” he said. 

Louis bit back a grin and followed along, trying to keep a straight face. They touched more things as they went on but it was becoming increasingly more difficult with the sheer amount of people that were surrounding them. 

“I got this one,” Louis said, nodding towards a large display. 

“What? How?” 

Louis grinned and turned his hand invisible. He could feel the texture of the display under his fingers as he caressed it.

“That’s cheating,” Harry whispered. 

“No, it isn’t,” Louis said. “We never said I wasn’t allowed to do that.”

“You’re so cheeky,” Harry said, shaking his head.

“Stop touching the displays!” Liam’s stern voice cut through Harry and Louis’ hushed giggling, resulting in Louis only grinning more. 

“We don’t have a clue what you’re talking about, Liam,” Louis replied, keeping his face as smile free as possible.

Liam rolled his eyes. “Zayn and I are heading off now,” he started. “Please try and behave. We’ll be back when we can.”

Harry and Louis nodded in unison and Zayn and Liam snuck off a few moments later. Louis leaned into Harry’s side as they walked back towards the group. Everyone was milling around the large room they were in, looking at various displays. Harry led Louis over to one corner and crowded up behind him as close as he could. Harry’s breath was hot on the back of his neck and Louis closed his eyes reflexively. 

“You should pay attention, Lou,” Harry whispered. “This could all be educational for you.”

Louis licked his lips and stepped backwards so that Harry was flush against him. Harry’s hands settled on his waist and for a moment, Louis thought Harry was going to turn him around and kiss him right there in the middle of the museum but Nick’s voice sharply called out to them interrupting their would be moment. 

Louis regained his composure and walked towards another display, leaving Harry trailing behind him. 

“Nick so has it in for you two today,” Niall said as he approached them a few minutes later with Ashley. They were holding hands and looking every part the cute couple that they were. “I keep hearing him mutter about stupid teenagers and hormones. I don’t know, I wasn’t really paying attention.”

“I think Nick’s just grumpy because we had to get up so early,” Ashley added. “He’s been like this all morning.”

“Someone should get him a coffee,” Louis said. 

“I’ll do it,” Harry offered and before Louis could say that he was kidding, Harry was standing next to Nick, undoubtedly offering to go and get him a coffee. Nick put his hand on Harry’s upper arm and looked at him with such a smug grin that Louis wanted to smack him. No teacher should be looking at a student like Nick was looking at Harry. Especially not one as creepy as Nick was.

Harry reappeared after a while and Louis had to swallow thickly to keep himself from blurting out what he really thought. When Harry’s hand slipped into Louis’ own a short while later, Louis promptly forgot all about being mad at Nick.

“I want to get some souvenirs before we leave,” Harry said. “Don’t let me forget?”

“Sure,” Louis agreed, squeezing Harry’s hand gently. 

“We’re going to break for lunch soon, everyone,” Mrs Fitz called out when it was closer to twelve o’clock.

“I’ll text Zayn,” Harry said, letting go of Louis’ hand. Louis stuffed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie and tried not to think about how cold they were without Harry holding onto one of them.

Mrs Fitz called out again fifteen minutes later that they all needed to head to the cafeteria and Louis did so eagerly, feeling like it had been weeks since he had eaten, not hours. He had barely managed breakfast with all of his nerves but Harry had told him that he needed to, at least, eat a muffin. Louis protested at first but he knew that Harry was right.

Just as they were lining up to get food, Zayn and Liam reappeared and Zayn was smiling brightly.

“I take it that it all went well, then?” Louis asked. Zayn nodded, smiling still.

“They were great,” Liam replied. 

“Good,” Louis said. They all ordered their lunch and sat down at a large table where Niall and Ashley were already sitting, chatting amongst themselves. 

“Well, it looks like there’s going to be good weather for the drive back,” Louis quipped, throwing a wink to Zayn who just shook his head.

“Idiot,” Zayn replied far too fondly for Louis to ever believe he was trying to be insulting.

Louis grinned widely at him. “In your absence,” he started. “Harry and I have managed to touch every single exhibit without getting caught.”

Liam frowned at them. “You’ll get us all kicked out, you know.”

“No, I won’t, I won’t get caught,” Louis said. “That’s the great thing about invisibility!” 

Liam rolled his eyes and Louis just grinned. “Please promise not to touch any other exhibits or displays today.”

Louis paused like he was contemplating Liam’s request. “Maybe,” he said. 

Their food came, effectively silencing them all for a while as they ate. Harry’s fork appeared before Louis’ gaze and he stabbed at a piece of Louis’ lunch, happily munching on what Louis had chosen, even though Harry had the _exact_ same meal.

“It tastes better off someone else’s plate,” Harry said at Louis’ raised eyebrow.

“You’re so strange, Harold,” Louis said.

“Yeah, but you love me,” Harry returned, giving Louis a winning smile. Louis kicked him under the table in response and smiled when Harry winced.

“Ouch, Lou, that hurt,” Harry said petulantly.

Louis just shrugged but he slipped his foot against Harry’s own underneath the table. He caught Harry’s smile and couldn’t help but smile back at him, ignoring their friends’ curious looks. They should be used to it by now, Louis thought. They were all a little strange, and not just because of their mutant abilities.

“I wonder if we can go to the gift shop next,” Harry said as they finished lunch. “I want to buy Gemma some things to post to her.”

“Go ask Nick, I’m sure he’ll let you,” Louis replied. 

Harry frowned at him, confusion clearly written on his face, but before he could respond, Liam said they had a dedicated half an hour at the end of their visit to browse the gift shop. 

“Alright, lads,” Niall said as he and Ashley stood. “We’re heading back into it.”

Liam and Zayn headed off next, leaving Harry and Louis alone again.

“Nick isn’t that bad, you know,” Harry said as they left the cafeteria. “You should give him a bit more credit.”

Louis sighed. “I’m sorry,” he said sincerely. “I’ll try and be nicer, I promise.”

Harry beamed at him and Louis knew he had said the right thing. He resolved that he would try and be a bit more civil towards Nick but he knew it wouldn’t last long as Nick got on every last nerve of his, but he wanted to try for Harry.

“Come listen to these stories,” Harry said, leading Louis towards exhibits they hadn’t seen. Louis listened as Harry spoke in depth about the displays, losing himself in the soft, slow way that Harry spoke. He could listen to Harry speak about fungus and still find it fascinating. Harry just had a way with words that absolutely captivated Louis. 

As they went around the museum, Louis found himself more and more interested in what the pieces were, rather than trying to touch everything. He still reached out and touched the exhibits whenever possible; enjoying the thrill it gave him. Harry did as well, grinning at Louis all the while.

“We should do this again sometime,” Harry said as they paused to view another display. 

“Yeah, we should,” Louis agreed, taking in the sheer detail of the display in front of them. He kept his hands by his side as he viewed it, feeling like touching it would ruin it somehow. 

Their time eventually ran out and Harry eagerly headed for the museum’s gift shop and he started to load up on all kinds of things that Louis thought were useless but Harry loved. He picked out a couple of items as well, figuring that Harry would enjoy them as a gift. He paid for his items and kept the bag hidden from Harry’s view as best as he could. Niall bought Ashley a replica necklace as a gift which she had gushed over to Harry after she had put it on. Niall was a really good boyfriend, Louis thought, especially when he saw how happy Ashley was at her gift.

The bad feelings Louis had had at the start of the day returned tenfold when he got back on the bus that afternoon with all of the other students. He frowned and sat down next to Harry.

“Lou?” Harry asked softly. “Here, have some water, you look a bit pale.”

Louis wordlessly accepted the bottle from Harry and took a few long sips before passing it back to him. 

“What’s wrong?” Harry asked softly, concern filling his voice.

“I don’t know,” Louis replied honestly. “I just feel weird again like this morning.”

“Hopefully it will go soon,” Harry said. “We’ll be back at the mansion in a few hours.”

“I know,” Louis said with a nod. He tried to focus on other things, like the conversation Harry was having with Niall and Ashley but he couldn’t. Every bump in the road made Louis’ stomach lurch and his hand grip onto Harry’s tighter.

Harry sat back after a while and took both of Louis’ hands in his own. “Focus on me, on my voice,” he said soothingly. “It’s okay, Lou, we’re going to get you through this.”

“Okay,” Louis nodded. He turned invisible by accident and focused to force himself out of it.

“Sing with me,” Harry said suddenly.

“What?” Louis asked, confused.

Harry nodded eagerly. “Sing with me,” he repeated. He started to sing a song by The Script that Louis knew and had listened to countless times with Harry. It started to work, soothing his frazzled nerves. They soon had the rest of the students on the bus singing with them and Louis gave Harry a smile as his nerves started to dissipate.

“Better?” Harry asked and Louis nodded.

“Yeah, thank you,” Louis replied. 

Harry squeezed his hands again and let go of one but kept one joined between them.

Just as Louis started to feel better, the bus gave an almighty lurch forwards. Louis instantly whipped a force field around himself and one around Niall and Ashley to their side and one around Zayn and Liam in front of them. 

“Lou?” Harry’s voice was muffled in Louis’ ears but he couldn’t stop the concentration if he tried. 

The bus came to a complete stop and Louis took a few deep breaths. He lowered the force fields and looked up to see his friends all looking at him curiously. 

“Sorry,” Louis said sheepishly. “Reflexes.”

“Nah, man, that was cool!” Niall said cheerily. “At least we know you’ve got our backs in a pinch!”

Louis gave them a hesitant smile. 

“It’s okay,” Harry said, nodding at Louis. Louis nodded back out of habit and closed his eyes. 

“Alright, looks like we’re going to be here a while,” Nick said. Louis looked up to where Nick was standing at the front of the bus. “There’s been some kind of accident up ahead and we’re going to be stuck for a while.”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Louis asked. “What kind of accident was it?”

Nick shrugged. “I don’t know,” he replied. “I can’t see that far away.”

Louis stood, dropping Harry’s hand. This was what he had been feeling all day, he was sure of it. “Can we see if we can help, then?” he asked.

“Louis, it’s best if you just sit down,” Nick said. “We’ll let the professionals deal with it, not a bunch of school kids.”

“But _we’re_ here,” Louis protested. “And aren’t we the best kind of people _to_ help?”

“Louis, just _sit down_ ,” Nick said, sighing heavily.

“No,” Louis replied. He shot Harry a glance and turned invisible. He saw Nick’s look of annoyance but he ignored it as he snuck passed him and out of the open bus doors. 

There were a lot of cars in front of them, all of them stopped. As Louis jogged passed them, he could hear people complaining loudly about what the hold up was. He shook his head and carried on, still invisible. If Nick didn’t want to help, then Louis couldn’t make him but he wasn’t going to sit idly by while something bad happened. 

He wasn’t even sure exactly what made him so certain that something was going on but he just knew it deep in his gut. There was something about this accident that wasn’t right and Louis wanted to _do_ something about it. He couldn’t let another accident happen without trying to do something.

As he approached the scene, he could see a few cars backed into each other, their bumpers and bonnets smashed in. No one looked hurt so far but Louis couldn’t see everything clearly just yet. He surveyed his surroundings, taking in who was safe and unhurt and who wasn’t. He turned himself visible again and had taken a step forwards when a hand caught his own.

Louis looked over his shoulder and saw Harry standing there, holding his hand. Zayn, Liam and Niall were already there and a moment later, Ashley teleported next to them.

“I can teleport people to safety,” Ashley said. “I may not be a class four but at least I can do that.”

Louis nodded. “Yeah, you can,” he agreed. He realised that they were all looking to him for instructions and he swallowed thickly. “There are people up ahead who are trapped in their cars, we should get them to safety as quickly as possible. Niall, can you do a quick run and survey the damage so we know what we’re up against?”

Niall flashed him a grin and a moment later, sped off. 

“What about the rest of us, Lou?” Harry asked.

Louis took a breath. “Zayn, can you clear the clouds? It’ll be easier for everyone to see if there’s a clear sky.”

“Yeah, sure,” Zayn replied and he turned his face skywards. 

“Harry, I’m going to need your empathetic ability to calm people down, okay?” Louis asked and Harry nodded, squeezing Louis’ hand. “Ashley, teleport however many you can at once to safety, back near our bus is probably safest.” Ashley nodded at him. “Liam, help out however you can and just don’t start any fires. The last thing we need is cars exploding out here.”

“Of course,” Liam said. 

Niall returned a moment later. “Bad news,” he said. “There’s a dozen cars almost crushed up ahead. There’s also a petrol tanker caught in the mix. We need to get everyone out before it explodes.”

“Shit,” Louis swore. “Okay, everyone, let’s go, this isn’t going to fix itself. Niall, push as many cars that aren’t damaged out of the way with your powers. There’s plenty of metal around that you’ll be able to harness it, right?”

Niall nodded. “Yeah, of course,” he said. “It’ll take a bit of work but I can do it.”

“I know you can,” Louis said confidently. If he had to choose anyone to work with, it would be these people. He knew they were all capable of great things. “Alright, let’s do it.”

Niall started, raising his hands, palms out flat and pushing the traffic back as far as he could so it was out of harm’s way. Ashley teleported out of sight and Louis could see her carrying a few people at a time to safety.

Louis squeezed Harry’s hand and led him into the middle. “Go,” he said to Harry who nodded, crossing over to the first car. Louis could tell that the people in it were panicking, even without Harry’s empathetic ability. He just hoped that Harry wouldn’t get overwhelmed.

Niall was back at Louis’ side a few moments later, using his powers to rip car doors off so they could get the people who were trapped out. Cries of pain filled Louis’ ears as he and Niall stepped towards another car. He looked down to see a lot of blood from the male who was in the front passenger’s seat. He was all but crushed from the waist down and Louis felt sick at the sight.

“Niall,” Louis whispered, stepping back from the car so they were out of earshot. “Get Harry over here _now_.”

Niall nodded and sped off, bringing Harry back with him. Louis stood out of earshot of the guy in the car and crossed over to Harry, who had a look of worry on his face. 

“Haz, this guy is freaking out,” Louis said. “I don’t want to get Niall to remove him in case we do any more damage.”

“I’ve got it, Lou,” Harry said, squeezing Louis’ shoulder before crouching down next to the guy. Harry took the guy’s hand and started talking in slow, soothing tones to him. 

Louis shook his head and focused on getting people out of the cars that Niall was pulling doors from. They all looked at him with a mixture of fear and wonder in their eyes.

“It’s okay,” Louis said softly, taking a little girl’s hand. “I want you to know that it’s going to be okay. Ashley is going to take you to safety, alright?”

The little girl nodded and Ashley teleported to his side a moment later. The girl took Ashley’s hand in her own, and clutched onto her teddy tightly. Ashley shot him a smile and teleported away a moment later. 

Liam and Zayn appeared and started passing people out of the cars to Ashley who teleported as many of them away as she could. Louis worked with Niall, who was pulling off car doors as fast and as safely as he could.

Louis stopped when he caught a scent of something that was forever ingrained in his mind. He frowned and climbed up on top of a vacant car to see that his fears were confirmed.   
He caught Liam’s gaze who was still on the ground, a panicked look on his face.

“Everyone, get out!” Louis yelled. “That truck is going to blow!”

Panicked screams filled the air and Louis saw Ashley appear and disappear as fast as she could, probably carrying more people than her powers allowed her to but he guessed she was running on adrenaline like the rest of them.

“Lou, c’mon!”

Harry was next to the car, looking up at Louis with wide eyes. He turned around to get down from the car but the truck sparked with fire before he could even move one foot. Louis threw up his arms reflexively, palms out flat, and created the biggest force field he had ever done before. His eyes widened as he took in the sheer size of the force field he had produced. It quickly covered the entire petrol tanker and contained the sparks of fire that were trying to get out. The flames from the blast licked at the insides of the force field, struggling to get out but Louis concentrated as hard as he could to contain it. He focused on making the force field smaller to contain it but the rest of the truck set alight and exploded inside of it. Louis gritted his teeth and ignored the pounding in his head as the force field expanded with the sheer force of the blast.

Louis felt blood trickling out of his nose and his knees felt weak. He swayed dangerously but he knew he couldn’t let the force field drop until everyone was safe. He watched as the fire inside the force field extinguished the fire inside of it as Louis made sure no oxygen could get inside of it. He tweaked it with his mind, altering the pressure until every last flame had disappeared.

“Everyone’s safe,” Harry said urgently from the ground.

The moment Harry’s hand touched Louis’ leg to get his attention, Louis collapsed, falling off the car he was standing on to the hard asphalt ground, exhausted with blood still dripping from his nose. He caught a glance of Harry’s worried expression as he fell before the whole world went black.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warnings (updated in the tags, as well): Original character death, blood, anxiety, slight PTSD.

Chapter Seven  
 _Harry_  


Harry had never seen such a wreck in his life.

On the 6 o’clock news at night, there were reports of things like this happening but Harry had never witnessed one in his life. He had never heard the cries of pain, the worried voices that filled his mind, the stench of blood in the air before today. The sickening sound of crunching metal was going to haunt Harry’s dreams for the longest time after this, he realised. Panic was present in every single person on the motorway and Harry’s head swam with the sheer amount of emotions flying off everyone. He took a deep breath and tried to centre himself. It wouldn’t do anyone any good if he suddenly lost his head and became a panicked mess as well.

He approached the first lot of people, a mum and two daughters, who had just been extricated from a car by Liam. He squatted down in front of the girls and gave them a shaky smile. He needed to do better, he realised, when he saw that the panic wasn’t leaving their faces.

“Hi,” he said softly. “’M Harry.”

“Chloe,” the smaller of the two girls said. She had blonde pigtails and had a Dora the Explorer backpack clutched in her tiny hands. 

“Hi, Chloe,” Harry said. “I know you don’t know me but me and my friends are going to help get rid of this mess, okay?”

Chloe nodded. “Okay,” she said.

Harry looked to the mother and the other daughter, who looked slightly older than Chloe but had the same blonde hair. She had a scared look on her face, worse than Harry had ever seen before in his life. The mother had a stony look on her face but from the waves of panic rolling off her, Harry could tell that she was more scared than her two daughters combined.

“And what’s your name?” he asked, turning his attention to the other girl.

“Ashley,” she said.

Harry smiled brightly. “You have the same name as my friend,” he replied, glancing over his shoulder. “See that girl with the golden brown hair?” He pointed her out and the little girl nodded. “That’s her.” Ashley disappeared from sight and the little girl gasped.

“Where’d she go?” she asked.

“She’s taking people to safety,” Harry replied. “She’s one of my friends helping out.”

“Wow,” little Ashley replied. 

Harry stood once he felt that the two young girls were a little more settled. He pushed his hair off his face, to the side, like always and held his hand out to shake the mother’s hand. She bit her lip but outstretched her own.

“Emma,” she said simply.

Harry forced his eyes to stay open as the emotions coming from Emma started to overwhelm him. “Hi, Emma,” he said. “I’m going to need you to take some deep breaths for me, okay?”

Emma nodded and Harry guided her through taking some deep breaths. He turned her to face away from the crash and slowly led her and her daughters away from the immediate line of danger. 

“It’s going to be okay,” he assured them. “We’re going to do our best to get this all under control.”

“You’re just a kid, though,” Emma replied, disbelief evident in her tone.

Harry gave her a small smile. “We’re good under pressure,” he said. He focused his powers on calming her down as much as possible and when her posture relaxed a little, he sighed inwardly in relief. “Alright, you guys stay here, try. Try to not get in the way of anyone else; we don’t know how much damage has been caused up ahead.”

Emma nodded and quickly took her daughters’ hands, leading them away. Chloe and Ashley tried to look behind them as Emma ushered them away but soon enough they were out of eyesight, which Harry was thankful for.

A moment later Niall appeared in front of Harry, stumbling to a halt. Harry immediately reached out to steady him and sent calming feelings off to Niall through his touch. 

“Don’t waste that on me,” Niall said, pushing Harry’s hand off his shoulder. “Louis needs you.”

Harry glanced up to where Louis was standing next to a car. He couldn’t see the damage from the angle he was at but he jogged over to Louis as fast as he could without even giving Niall time to explain what had happened.

Harry put his hand on the back of Louis’ shoulder, and squeezed gently, trying to comfort Louis. He knew he had a look of worry on his own face by the way Louis reacted to him. He watched as Louis’ gaze shifted to something a little less emotive.

“Haz, this guy is freaking out,” Louis said. “I don’t want to get Niall to remove him in case we do any more damage.”

Harry’s gaze flicked down to the car, noticing for the first time the amount of blood and the man crunched up inside of the car. His stomach churned at the sight and Harry forced his gaze back to Louis. “I’ve got it, Lou,” he said, squeezing Louis’ shoulder once more. 

He stepped closer to the car and crouched down next to it. He pointedly didn’t look at the way the guy’s legs were crushed completely, blood staining his light blue jeans. He took a deep breath and took the guy’s hand. How he was still awake, Harry wasn’t sure, but he wanted to do his best to calm the guy down.

“Hi,” he said. “I’m Harry.”

The guy looked over at him, his dark, dark brown eyes boring into Harry’s own. He had short black hair and his face was deathly pale. “Thomas,” he replied shakily.

“Hi, Thomas,” Harry said softly. “I know this is all pretty scary right now but I need you to trust me, okay?”

Thomas nodded once and then winced. “Harry,” he started.

“Shh.” Harry felt bad for cutting him off but he wasn’t sure if he could deal with the questions Thomas surely had on top of trying to keep him as calm as possible. “I just need to do something first.”

“Okay,” Thomas replied. He was overly trusting and Harry wasn’t sure if that was his nature or if it was from the fact that he was clearly in so much pain he had no other way to be.

Harry closed his eyes and gripped Thomas’ hand firmly in his own. He concentrated on sending waves of calm through their joined hands down to Thomas. He didn’t like to do this often to people, as he felt like it took away their will to feel what they wanted, but the situation was dire and Harry had no idea how else to help. 

The stench of blood was thick in the air around them. He wanted Thomas’ mind to forget about that, to concentrate only on the feelings of calmness that Harry was sending to him. He opened his eyes again and found Thomas looking at him curiously.

“Tell me your happiest memory,” Harry requested, not letting go of Thomas’ hand. 

Thomas’ mouth quirked upwards a little. “That would be the day my son was born.” Harry tensed. He had a _son_. His stomach churned again and he shoved aside his own feelings to focus on the stranger in front of him. “He was a week late. My wife was fretting like mad but I knew that he’d come when he wanted to. He’s already three and he’s one of the laziest kids I’ve ever met. He has all the time in the world for everything.” Thomas’ speech was slow and his words slurred a little. Harry kept focusing on the connection between them, trying to keep Thomas as calm as possible. “He does everything at his own pace, in his own time.”

“He sounds great,” Harry said. 

“Harry,” Thomas started and before Harry could cut him off, the question Harry least wanted to hear had left his mouth; “why can’t I feel my legs?”

Harry swallowed thickly. “I… There was an accident.” He gripped Thomas’ hand tighter. He wasn’t sure who it was comforting more at this point. “There are ambulances coming. We’re going to get you out of here as soon as possible, okay?”

Thomas nodded once, the movement slow. “Okay.”

“Tell me more about your son?” Harry asked. 

Thomas’ breathing was slower as he started to talk again. “He didn’t crawl at all,” he started. “One day he was sitting, playing with his toys and the next second, he got up and _ran_. I was so stunned.” Harry smiled at the story, at the fondness in Thomas’ tone. “He may be the laziest toddler in the world but he knows exactly what he wants and he goes for it. He’s so intelligent, too.” 

A moment later, Thomas’ smile turned into a grimace and he started coughing. He put his hand over his mouth and coughed into it. Harry put his hand on Thomas’ shoulder to keep the connection there, wanting Thomas to stay as calm as possible. Thomas leaned back in his seat again and pulled his hand away from his mouth. It was covered in blood. Harry closed his eyes briefly, trying to keep his own emotions in check. A fraction of a second later, Thomas started coughing again, this time directly into Harry’s unsuspecting face. He saw the blood dripping from Thomas’ mouth and he knew that he was going to be covered in the mess.

“I-I’m sorry,” Thomas wheezed.

“It’s okay,” Harry said, wiping the back of his hand across his mouth. He shuffled closer to Thomas and took both of Thomas’ hands in his own. “Look at me. Hear those sirens?” They both paused, the sirens blaring loudly in the background. “They’re coming to help, okay?”

Thomas nodded. “Harry, I don’t want to die,” he whispered. Harry’s stomach clenched tightly. “I… I… I can’t die.”

“I know,” Harry said urgently. “I’m going to stay with you until the ambulance gets here, okay?”

Thomas nodded once more. He closed his eyes and coughed again, raising one shaky hand to cover his mouth. Blood dripped down his chin, splashing onto his white button up shirt, making everything seem brighter in comparison. Harry wondered if he had been coming home from work when the accident happened.

“Harry?”

“Yeah?”

“Tell… tell my…”

Thomas tipped his head towards Harry and a second later, nothing happened. His hands slackened in Harry’s grip. Harry squeezed them but had no response. He reached a shaky hand up to press against the pulse point on Thomas’ neck and closed his eyes, trying to locate it. He knew it was there somewhere; he just needed to _find_ it. 

Harry’s eyes snapped open when he realised he couldn’t locate one and he let out a sob. “Thomas… Thomas, wake up.”

Nothing happened.

A hand fell on Harry’s shoulder and he looked up to see Zayn standing over him. 

“I… I couldn’t save him,” Harry said shakily. 

Zayn helped lift him up and Harry clung onto him tightly. “It’s okay, Haz, it’s okay.”

Harry sobbed in Zayn’s arms. His entire body was shaking. He couldn’t even keep himself upright. He collapsed against the back tyre of Thomas’ car and stared at his hands which were covered in Thomas’ blood. Zayn knelt between Harry’s knees and pulled him close. Harry let out another broken sob and buried his face in the crook of Zayn’s neck, letting his friend hold him. 

“Zayn!” Liam’s panicked voice called out. “Zayn!”

“Haz, c’mon, get up,” Zayn said urgently, lifting Harry to his feet once more. 

Harry stumbled a little but regained his footing quickly as he took in the scene around him. There were still too many people around, too many smashed in cars, too much panic in the air. Harry swayed from the intensity of it all. He found his centre and started walking again, hand in hand with Zayn back over to where Liam was.

“There’s still too many people trapped,” Liam said. “Ashley and Niall are doing most of the leg work but there are still too many people.”

Harry nodded. “What do you want me to do?”

“Just get people to safety. Worry about soothing them later,” Liam instructed. 

“Okay,” Harry said. He and Zayn helped a teenage boy from his car, who had clearly broken his leg in the crash. He leaned heavily on Zayn, and Harry let Zayn guide him to safety.

Harry felt Liam’s panic before he had even set his gaze on his friend. He saw the colour drain from Liam’s face and he stopped dead in his tracks. Something was wrong. Something bigger than just the accident.

“Everyone, get out!” Louis yelled. “That truck is going to blow!”

Panicked screams filled the air and Harry felt it overwhelm him. People shuffled passed him as fast as they could. Ashley appeared and disappeared faster than Harry had ever seen. She was carrying more people than he knew her powers could take. He just hoped that she didn’t hurt herself. 

Harry realised that Louis hadn’t moved from the top of the car he was standing on. He rushed over to Louis’ side and looked up at him with worry.

“Lou, c’mon!” he pleaded.

Louis glanced down at him and had moved to turn around when Harry heard what sounded like a lighter being lit. The explosion happened before Harry could even react. He reacted immediately, arms flying up to shield his face even though he fully expected to be blasted back, to be consumed by the flames, to die on the spot but none of that happened.

He glanced up at Louis who was still standing on top of the car, his hands were out and the biggest force field Harry had _ever_ seen was covering the entire area where the cars and petrol tanker were. Louis’ fingertips were glowing the same soft blue colour that his force field did at times and Harry stared in awe at it. Louis’ jaw was set and he had a look of sheer concentration on his face.

The petrol tanker exploded next, pushing at the sides of the force field but Louis wasn’t letting up. Harry could practically see the power rolling off him in waves, every single ounce of his energy going into protecting everyone. The flames struggled against the force field but Louis hadn’t lost concentration yet. The flames slowly but surely retreated until they had extinguished under the power of the force field. 

From his angle, Harry could see Louis swaying on his feet and he stepped closer, ready to help Louis down the moment the blast was extinguished. Eventually, there was nothing left, no flames or anything, and the force field disappeared. 

“Everyone’s safe,” Harry said urgently, sensing the relief coming from the crowd of people that were well behind him. He reached over to touch Louis’ leg to get his attention but Louis collapsed in front of him and fell off the roof of the car, hitting the ground hard, blood dripping out of his nose. 

“Louis!” Harry cried. “Louis!” Harry dropped to his knees at Louis’ side. He gently cradled Louis’ head in his right hand, his left pressing against the pulse point on Louis’ neck. He had a heartbeat but it was faint. “Lou, wake up, please,” Harry begged, repeating what he had just said to Thomas only minutes ago.

There was blood smeared across Louis’ cheek, starting from his nose and his entire face was deathly pale. Harry bit his lip and pushed Louis’ hair away from his eyes, ignoring his own blood stained hands. “Lou, please.”

“Harry.” Liam stood over him, concern etched on his face. “C’mon, we need to get Louis back to the school.”

“I can take him,” Ashley said. She looked as tired as Harry felt but she was their only option.

“Take me too, please?” Harry asked. 

Ashley bit her lip and looked between Niall and Harry before nodding. She crouched down next to them and placed a hand each on Harry and Louis’ shoulders. Harry curled his fingers between Louis’ own limp ones and closed his eyes. He felt his whole world shift and the hard ground beneath his knees was replaced by cold tiles. Harry opened his eyes and saw they were in the medic wing of the school.

Doctor Peters gasped as they appeared and hovered over them. Harry helped lift Louis’ lifeless body onto one of the beds and Doctor Peters immediately started to hook Louis up to various machines.

“Harry,” Ashley said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I have to go back, will you be okay?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he said, glancing at her worried expression. “I’ll be fine; I need to stay with him.”

Ashley hesitated before she disappeared from sight. He hovered near Louis’ side until Doctor Peters snapped at him to help. He obediently passed her the things she needed and stepped out of the way when she needed to get closer to Louis. After a few long moments, Louis was hooked up to various machines and Doctor Peters was asking Harry questions about what had happened to Louis that he felt like he couldn’t answer but did his best. He explained what had happened on the motorway and how Louis produced a force field so big that it contained the blast. Harry had been so proud of him for that but when he looked down at Louis’ unresponsive body, he wondered if it was worth it. 

He knew it was, of course, and it was a silly thought to have because the people on the motorway would have died if it wasn’t for Louis. They _all_ would have died if it wasn’t for Louis. None of them would have been able to withstand that blast. Not even Harry could have absorbed that much without it having an adverse effect.

Doctor Peters told him to sit down and Harry did so obediently, falling into a chair across the room that was close enough to Louis’ bed for Harry to see what was going on. He bit his lip and watched as Doctor Peters scribbled on the piece of paper attached to the clipboard in her hand, checking the monitors and scribbling some more.

Tears pricked at the backs of Harry’s eyes but he blinked hard to hold them back. He couldn’t cry now, he needed to keep his wits about him so he could help if Doctor Peters needed it. She ignored him for the most part, focusing on Louis’ needs and Harry was more than okay with that. Whatever Louis needed came first.

A while later, the door to the medic wing burst open and Niall, Liam, Zayn and Ashley all entered. Harry looked up but made no move to stand.

“Get out,” Doctor Peters said. “All of you.”

“I’m staying,” Zayn said determinedly. Doctor Peters turned her back on them. “I’ll text you guys, okay?”

Harry blinked, watching as Liam wrapped Zayn in a tight hug before letting go. Niall crossed over to Harry while they were hugging and he crouched down in front of him. 

“Haz,” Niall said softly. “You okay?”

Harry nodded silently. Niall’s feelings were pretty easy for Harry to read but he tuned them out. Niall stood again and patted Harry’s shoulder twice before leaving. The sound of the door closing made Harry wince and he closed his eyes again. He took a few deep breaths and tried to find his centre but he couldn’t concentrate enough to.

Something wet touched Harry’s hands and his eyes snapped open. He saw Zayn standing in front of him, wet paper towel in his grasp. He was cleaning Harry’s hands of the blood, Harry realised. He burst into tears at the act and Zayn pulled Harry into his arms. They all but fell onto the cold tile of the hospital wing, Harry practically in Zayn’s lap. Zayn’s arms tightened around Harry as he cried into the crook of Zayn’s shoulder, staining his shirt with tears.

It all just came rushing out of him, the emotions that he had taken in that day, trying to calm strangers down, trying to save someone’s life but miserably failing. He wasn’t sure how anyone could do that every day of their lives, watching people die in front of them. 

Zayn’s hand was in his hair, fingers pressing against his scalp. It calmed Harry a little but not in the way it would if it were Louis doing it. Thinking of Louis brought on a fresh bout of tears that Harry just couldn’t control. He shook uncontrollably in Zayn’s arms, hot tears rolling down his cheeks. He could see the discolouring of them as they landed on his own shirt, marred with the blood that Thomas had coughed in his face. 

A long while later, Harry’s sobs subsided. His head hurt from everything but he didn’t want to let go of Zayn to get some water. Zayn stayed silent still, just holding him close. Harry couldn’t have asked for a better friend. 

“You okay?” Zayn asked eventually.

Harry pulled back and looked at Zayn through puffy eyes. “I…” he shook his head a couple of times before nodding once. “I think so.”

Zayn cupped Harry’s cheeks with his hands, thumbs wiping away at the tears pooled under his eyes. “You’re a right mess,” he said softly.

“Still prettier than you,” Harry whispered. 

Zayn smiled and shook his head. “You boys will never learn – I’m the prettiest.”

Harry cracked a smile. “You’re the second prettiest.”

Both of their gazes wandered over to the bed which Louis was occupying, the machines beeping noisily. He was still asleep from what Harry could see. He just hoped that Louis would wake up soon enough.

“C’mon, let’s get you cleaned up,” Zayn said. 

They stood awkwardly, gripping onto each other for balance. Harry’s foot was asleep from being in the one position for so long. He shook it out and a few moments later, he regained feeling in it. He hobbled over to the sink and pulled out a few more sheets of paper towel out of the dispenser. He held it under the tap to get it wet and looked up at himself in the mirror. He flinched when he saw his reflection. Blood was smeared across his face, splatters on his forehead and down his nose. His cheeks were stained pink from where his tears had wet the blood but it had dried rather than washed the blood away.

His hands were just as bad. He had blood underneath his fingernails and the beds of his nails were stained red with Thomas’ blood. He washed his face first. He pressed too hard with the paper towel as he scrubbed at the blood, leaving his face feeling raw. He didn’t care, though, he wanted every speck of blood gone. He scrubbed at his face with the paper towel, rubbing over spots that were probably clean but he wanted to make sure.

“Haz.”

Zayn’s hands covered his own and Harry stopped. He closed his eyes and took a breath. The pressure of wet paper towel appeared on his face again but Zayn’s gentle and sure swipes soothed Harry a lot more than his own did. The pressure disappeared after a few moments and Harry blinked open his eyes once more. Zayn took Harry’s left hand in his own and rubbed at Harry’s nails first; taking his time to make sure each one was clean. He pushed the paper towel under Harry’s nails as best as he could, scraping out the dried blood. 

Harry stood still and let Zayn slowly get his hands clean. He rinsed his left hand off before Zayn started on his right, repeating the motions of washing his hand thoroughly. 

He felt numb. 

Somehow he had passed the hurt and the anger and he felt nothing. He could feel the pressure of Zayn’s hands holding his own but he couldn’t really _feel_ it. He couldn’t feel anything. Zayn washed off his hand and Harry looked down at them. They were spotless. He turned them over, taking in the slightly raw skin. 

He looked up at Zayn who just stepped in close and wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug. Harry pressed in close, tucking his face into the crook of Zayn’s neck again and breathed deeply, letting Zayn’s warmth surround him. 

“Alright?” Zayn asked after a while.

“Tired,” Harry replied simply.

“Sit down,” Zayn said, leading Harry to a chair. He sat down in the chair next to Harry and kept his hand firmly in Harry’s own. Harry squeezed it gratefully. 

Harry relaxed into the chair and tipped his head back. He closed his eyes and tried to find his centre once more. He evened his breathing out and remembered everything Cal had taught him. It took a while but Harry eventually got it. The tension slowly left his body. Not all of it but enough that he could relax a little, Zayn’s hand an anchor in his own.

He must have fallen asleep for a few minutes because the next thing he knew, he was jolting awake, screams still echoing in his ears. He looked around the room and suddenly Zayn was in front of him.

“Breathe,” Zayn instructed. “Just breathe with me, Harry.”

Zayn pressed his forehead against Harry’s own, his hands gripping the back of Harry’s neck a little too tightly. Harry forced himself to breath in unison with Zayn, inhaling shakily. Harry scrunched his eyes closed but the images of the crash were still present when he did. He bit back a sob and gave into the pressure of Zayn’s fingers on his skin. 

“Have some tea.”

Harry broke away from Zayn to see Liam looking at him worriedly. Harry accepted the steaming mug and brought it to his lips. He took a sip. It warmed his insides immediately. He clutched the mug in both hands and took a few more sips, letting the scalding hot liquid burn his tongue.

“I thought you weren’t allowed in here?” Harry asked, voice cracking a little as he did. 

“That was about four hours ago,” Liam said. “You were out for a while there.”

Harry flicked his gaze to Zayn who nodded at him. “Sorry,” he said.

“It’s alright,” Zayn replied. “You needed it.”

Harry sighed; he didn’t feel like he had been asleep for a few hours. He still felt as drained as before. He took another sip of his tea and closed his eyes for a brief moment. The tea was thankfully doing its job of soothing him. Louis would be proud. His head snapped up. “Lou-” 

“No change,” Liam said immediately. “Doctor Peters is running tests. She thinks he’s just really drained and is restoring his energy.”

Harry set his mug down on the tiled floor and crossed over to Louis’ side. He brushed Louis’ fringe away from his eyes where it had fallen and trailed the backs of his fingers down his cheek. His face was devoid of any blood and Harry wondered if Zayn had cleaned him up, too.

He let his fingers trail down Louis’ arm and then tangled their fingers together. He squeezed them and looked back up at Louis but there was no response. He sighed and dipped his head down so he could kiss the back of it. He kept Louis’ hand between his own and he knelt down on the floor next to him. He wished that he could give Louis some of his energy so that he could heal faster. 

He was worried about Louis. He had never seen that kind of display of power before. He was proud of him, of course, but he was scared that Louis wasn’t going to wake up. He knew Louis was powerful, the force field on his first night of school had proved that much, but the explosion on the motorway should have killed them all. He was glad it hadn’t, of course, because he didn’t want Louis to die without him knowing just how much he meant to Harry. 

“Harry,” Liam’s voice cut through his thoughts again. “Finish your tea.”

Harry nodded and stood. Liam pressed the mug back into his hand before wrapping him in a tight hug. He could feel Liam’s worry seeping between them like fog. It curled around Harry’s mind and he had to physically step back. “I…”

“Sorry,” Liam said immediately. “Just. Tea.”

Harry raised the mug to his lips and took a sip. It was almost cold but it still tasted good. He quickly drank the rest of the mug before Liam took it from him again. 

“I’ll go make you another one.”

“Thanks,” Harry replied. 

Liam shot him a sympathetic look before disappearing.

Zayn crossed the room to where Harry was standing. “He’ll pull through,” he said. “He’s strong.”

Harry turned his attention back to Louis’ lax face. He bit his lip and took Louis’ hand in his own again. Zayn took Harry’s other hand, lacing their fingers together. 

“You were great today,” he said after a few long minutes.

Harry shook his head. “It wasn’t enough,” he said. “Not nearly enough.”

“Haz,” Zayn said softly, tugging on Harry’s hand. Harry glanced at him, eyes damp. “You were _great_ , okay? That guy you were with–”

“Thomas,” Harry interrupted. 

“Thomas,” Zayn repeated. “He would have died a lot quicker and in a lot more pain if it hadn’t been for you.”

“He still died,” Harry pointed out.

Zayn tugged hard on Harry’s hand and forced him to look right at Zayn. “Stop,” he said. “I’m not letting you wallow in self-pity. You were fucking brilliant and you did a lot of good out there. Okay?”

Harry sucked his bottom lip between his teeth and nodded. “Okay.”

Zayn crowded into Harry’s space again and he wrapped his arms around Harry’s middle in a firm hug. He pressed a kiss to the corner of Harry’s mouth. “I watched you with Thomas and even though he was going to die, you stayed there with him. You didn’t have to. You didn’t have to stay there and hold his hand through the last minutes of his life but you _did_ and that’s a great thing.”

Tears pooled behind Harry’s eyes again and he took a shaky breath. It was all still so overwhelming. He clung to Zayn tightly, his cheek pressed against Zayn’s own. 

“Thank you,” he said after a while.

“I love you, you prat,” Zayn said, reaching up a hand to poke where Harry’s dimple normally poked into his cheek. “No need to thank me.”

Harry smiled briefly. “I love you too.”

Zayn squeezed him again and Liam re-entered the room a moment later, carrying three mugs. He handed them out, keeping one for himself and they all raised them to their mouths.

“Where’s mine?”

Harry almost dropped his mug as he heard the croak of Louis’ voice from slightly behind him. He quickly passed it to Liam and rushed to Louis’ side. “Lou,” he breathed, smiling down at him.

“Hi,” Louis croaked out.

Harry wanted to cry from happiness at the sight of Louis’ eyes locked with his. He wanted to tell him he loved him, tell him how much he needed him in his life but he was pushed away a moment later by Doctor Peters who was at Louis’ side, poking and prodding at him. Harry’s heart sank a little but he understood that she was doing her job. It didn’t stop him wanting to be by Louis’ side, though.

Liam pressed the mug back into Harry’s hands and ordered him to keep drinking. He could feel the warmth of Zayn and Liam standing behind him and could feel the relief coming off them, seeping under his skin. His mind cleared a little better with the change in emotions from worry to calmness and with every sip of tea he took, Harry felt his own body start to relax.

“You’ve got two minutes,” Doctor Peters said, looking over at them.

Harry nodded at her and Liam reached out for his mug once more. Harry closed the distance between him and Louis’ bed and immediately took his hand. “You scared me.”

“Sorry,” Louis replied, his fingers twitching in Harry’s hold. Harry brought the hand up to his lips and kissed the inside of it, keeping it against his face. Louis’ fingers immediately found their way into Harry’s hair and he let out a sigh of happiness at the familiar feeling. He dipped his head forwards to get more contact and locked gazes with Louis. “How’re you?”

“’M fine,” Harry mumbled. “Don’t want to leave your side.”

“You don’t have to,” Louis said. He sounded as tired as Harry felt. His eyes were drooping, eyelashes fluttering against his cheeks every few moments. “Love you, Harry.”

“Love you too, Lou,” Harry returned. A moment later, Doctor Peters put a needle into the IV line in Louis’ other hand. “What’s that?” he asked.

“Sedative,” Doctor Peters replied. “He needs to stay calm and sleep so he can heal properly. His vitals are still off.”

Harry looked worriedly down at Louis who was looking passed Harry’s shoulder to where Zayn and Liam were standing. They each had a hand on Louis’ ankles, touching him. Harry figured they were eager to see that Louis was fine for their own peace of mind. 

“I suggest you go get some sleep, Harry,” Doctor Peters said. “Louis isn’t going to be awake again until morning now.”

Harry bit his lip. “I want to stay,” he replied.

“Harry, c’mon,” Liam urged from behind him. 

Harry shook his head. “No,” he said. “I can’t leave him.”

“He’s not going anywhere, Harry, I’m going to be doing hourly observations on him,” Doctor Peters interjected. “Go get some sleep. You _all_ need it.”

“I got this.”

Harry’s head snapped up in time to see Niall wink at him before Harry felt his body being forcibly moved off the bed. Niall’s fingers were twitching, stretched out in front of him and Harry realised that Niall was using the metal of his belt to pull him along.

“When did you even get here?” he wondered, glancing to Zayn and Liam who just shrugged and left the medic wing. 

“Zayn texted me,” Niall replied easily. “Got here as fast as I could.”

Harry smiled despite himself. “Alright, let go of my belt, I can walk myself.”

“Nah,” Niall said. “This is more fun.”

Harry huffed and let himself be tugged along by Niall’s powers. He threw one last glance over his shoulder at Louis’ sleeping form and made a promise to himself to get back as soon as he could. He didn’t want Louis to wake up at all and him not be there. 

“C’mon, you need a shower, you stink,” Niall said once they reached their floor. Harry knew Niall was right. He was still gross from earlier in the day, despite Zayn cleaning his hands and face for him.

He showered as quickly as possible in the stall next to Zayn. Now that Louis had woken up, all of Harry’s feelings had resurfaced and he was exhausted. He needed to sleep. He said good night to Zayn before leaving the bathroom and headed back to his room. He paused at the door. He didn’t want to go to bed in an empty room, knowing that Louis was down in the medic wing. He wanted to fall asleep curled up in Louis’ arms like he usually did.

The door knob turned before Harry could reach for it and he looked up in surprise when Niall’s face suddenly filled his vision. 

“Whoa, sorry,” Niall said. “I was just going to get some food for you to have when you got back. You may as well come with me.”

“’M not hungry,” Harry mumbled, stepping passed Niall and into the room. He put his belongings down on his bed but Niall grabbed his wrist. 

“Bull,” Niall replied. He laced their fingers together and tugged on Harry’s hand. “You haven’t eaten since lunch and you can’t go to bed on an empty stomach.”

Harry followed Niall to the kitchen where Niall made Harry a sandwich and one for himself. He poured a glass of water for them each and then sat down at the table to eat. He picked at his sandwich slowly, chewing each bite longer than he normally would. Niall’s knee was pressed against his own and Harry was pleased to find calmness coming off Niall rather than stress. His powers had taken a beating today, Harry knew that much, so it was nice to be near someone who wasn’t a constant ball of worry.

“Done?” Niall asked once Harry had put the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth. Harry nodded and Niall took the plates over to the sink. “I’ll do the dishes tomorrow. You need to sleep now.”

Harry finished off his drink and put it into the sink next to the plates and followed Niall back to his bedroom. He automatically glanced over to Louis’ bed and made the quick decision that he was still going to sleep in it. He kicked off his socks and took his shirt off before climbing into the bed. The pillow smelled like Louis and it had a calming effect on Harry’s fried nerves.

“Alright then,” Niall said. He pulled off his shirt and climbed into the bed as well.

“Niall…?”

“I’m not leaving you alone,” Niall replied. “You’re like a fucking zombie right now. Just get some sleep and we’ll talk about you eating my brain in the morning, alright?”

“Alright,” Harry agreed. He settled under the covers, pulling them up around his neck. Niall shifted behind him and he wrapped his arms around Harry’s middle, pulling him back against his chest. His body didn’t fit against Harry’s like Louis’ did but Harry knew he needed the comfort and Niall was a cuddly person.

“We should go out soon,” Niall said after a short while.

Harry looked over his shoulder at Niall. “What for?”

“Because I haven’t been pissed in ages,” Niall replied. “I need to get drunk and just let loose for a night.”

“We had that bottle of vodka just last week,” Harry pointed out.

“I need to get _proper_ pissed,” Niall replied. “I’m fucking Irish, we drink from birth. We have Baileys instead of milk.”

Harry snorted and turned over to face Niall. “You’re weird.”

Niall grinned. “I’m _Irish_ ,” he replied. “What do you say, yeah?”

Harry shrugged. “Maybe,” he said. 

“You need something to help you forget today, too,” Niall added, poking Harry in the arm. “Nothing a good piss up won’t fix.”

Harry rolled his eyes fondly. “When Louis’ better, yeah?”

Niall grinned widely. “Yeah. We should just have a good lads night out.”

“Getting sick of the girlfriend already?” Harry teased.

Niall kicked him under the blankets. “No,” he replied. “She’ll probably go home if it’s a weekend. Her little sister has some science competition coming up. Full of geniuses, that family.”

Harry poked Niall in the arm. “You’re good together,” he said. “She’s really awesome.”

Niall grinned, his eyes sparkling. “Yeah, she is,” he agreed. “I really like her.”

“Good,” Harry said. “She was really good today. I don’t know how she kept her head out there.”

“We all did what we had to do,” Niall replied. “Get things done, fall apart later. That’s what me mum always used to say.”

Harry hummed and rolled back over onto his side. He played with the edge of the pillow and thought about how true that saying was. They had all done what they needed to do out there on the motorway. Harry still wasn’t sure how he managed to keep calm with the sheer amount of emotions that had been flying high but he had. Zayn was right, he could have easily walked away from Thomas, let him die by himself but he hadn’t. Harry wouldn’t have wanted anyone to go through what Thomas had alone. No one should die by themselves. 

“I’m definitely falling apart now,” Harry whispered.

Niall reached over and squeezed his shoulder. “You’re doing alright, Harry,” he said. “You just need a decent night’s sleep and you’ll be fine.”

“Yeah,” Harry agreed. He wasn’t sure he believed it completely but he knew that Niall was just trying to help. 

A few minutes later, the bedroom door opened. Zayn and Liam walked in, holding hands. They said good night and climbed into Harry’s bed together. 

“Niall?” Harry whispered.

“Yeah?”

“Can you stroke my hair?” 

“’Course,” Niall replied. His fingers carded through Harry’s hair, stroking at his scalp. The pressure was completely off, absolutely nothing like Louis would do, but it was soothing enough that Harry relaxed under the constant motion. Niall’s heart beat thudded against his back and Harry slowly fell asleep, counting the beats in his mind until he couldn’t count any more.

~*~  
 _Louis_  


“I feel _fine_ ,” Louis huffed as Doctor Peters took the blood pressure cuff off his arm. He rubbed at the skin that had pinched underneath it and waited for her to scribble on the clipboard she was holding in her hands.

“I still need to do these tests, Louis,” she said. “From what the boys said, you displayed a _massive_ amount of power and then promptly passed out. Your vitals were way off and I need to double check them again.”

Louis rolled his eyes. Ever since he had woken up that morning, Doctor Peters and her nurse, Ellie Gourley, had been poking and prodding Louis, taking blood, checking his blood pressure and performing all kinds of examinations on him. He just wanted to leave the medic wing, go back to bed and snuggle with Harry until dinner time. Apparently that was too much to ask. All of the needles and monitoring equipment had been removed from Louis’ body, thankfully, after Doctor Peters had ran some more tests. He rubbed at the spot where the IV line had been, glad that he was no longer tethered to the various machines by his bed.

“Alright, let’s move onto testing your powers,” Doctor Peters said. 

Ellie appeared with a few different items and Louis focused on surrounding each item with a force field one at a time while Doctor Peters looked at the monitors Louis was hooked up to. After he had successfully held a force field around himself for five minutes straight, Doctor Peters asked if he could turn invisible. Louis did and looked down to see that his entire being had successfully turned invisible. 

While he was invisible, Nick wandered into the room. Louis kept his invisibility up, wondering why Nick was there.

“Louis, you can turn visible again now,” Doctor Peters said.

Louis nodded but realised she couldn’t see him so he turned visible once more. He saw Nick give him a smile and he blinked in response.

“How are you feeling, Louis?” Nick asked, his voice laced with concern.

Louis frowned. It wasn’t like Nick to have that kind of tone with him _ever_. “Like I keep telling Doctor Peters, I’m _fine_.”

Doctor Peters clucked her tongue and turned to Nick. “His vitals are back to normal, BP is fine, temp is fine, everything is exactly how it should be for a healthy eighteen year old boy. By the book, he’s perfect.”

Louis grinned at that. “Glad you think so,” he replied.

Doctor Peters ignored him. “Take a look at the stats from last night.” She handed her clipboard to Nick who flicked through the pages. His expression portrayed nothing, much to Louis’ chagrin. Nick kept his gaze on the clipboard and handed it back to Doctor Peters when he was done.

“I see,” he said. “Alright, Louis, time for you and I to have a chat.”

Louis felt his stomach drop. Doctor Peters left the room with Ellie and Nick pulled one of the chairs across the room to sit in front of Louis’ bed. He crossed one leg over the other and relaxed back into the chair, his gaze fixed on Louis.

Louis’ mind raced. He couldn’t even think of a witty joke or sarcastic comment to throw out there to lighten the mood. Nick was looking at him far too seriously for Louis’ liking and it freaked him out. In all of Louis’ time at the school, Nick had never shown an ounce of concern for him before. He wanted to know why all of a sudden Nick was interested.

“That was some display of power out there yesterday,” Nick started. “And your results were off the charts. Doctor Peters struggled with you a lot yesterday from the residual effect your force field had on your body.”

He had no idea what that meant and Nick didn’t seem like he wanted to share. Louis swung his legs back and forth where they were hanging over the edge of his bed. “Are you going to explain this to me in English?”

Nick leaned forwards, uncrossing his leg. He gave Louis a hard look. “It means that I’m going to have to spend a lot of time with you outside of class to get your powers under control. We’re lucky that your force field didn’t backfire and kill everyone on that motorway.”

Louis frowned. “I knew that wouldn’t happen,” he protested. “My force fields _protect_.”

“Tell me what you were feeling out there,” Nick said, changing the topic. “Tell me every emotion you were feeling when you were up on that car.”

Louis huffed and ran his hand through his hair. He licked his lips and thought back to the day before, trying to remember what Nick was asking him to. “I don’t know, really,” he started. “I hadn’t been able to shake the bad feeling I was having all day and standing up on that car felt the same.” He paused, trying to recall everything. “I smelled the petrol before the explosion and I just had an overwhelming urge to protect everyone.”

He met Nick’s cool gaze and purposefully left out any relation to his own accident before he started at the school. He knew the two were connected in his mind, somehow. Liam had clearly seen it written across Louis’ face and hadn’t left his side during the entire ordeal. Louis wasn’t going to tell Nick about it, though. He didn’t trust Nick at all. 

“What else?” Nick prompted.

Louis shrugged. “That’s it,” He replied. “The urge took over and my powers activated. I guess my powers reacted before I did, covering the entire explosion before it could hurt anyone else.” He still regretted that it hurt anyone at all. 

Something wasn’t right, Louis knew that much. Nick had been the one to tell Louis he shouldn’t go out and help at all, but Louis had. He couldn’t shake the feeling that if he had listened to Nick, they would all be dead right now.

“I know you’re still quite drained,” Nick started, standing up out of the chair. “But I want to start training this afternoon, okay? I promise it won’t be strenuous but I need to see where your powers are at to understand the situation.”

“Okay,” Louis replied. 

Nick patted him on the shoulder and Louis glanced at his hand before he looked up at Nick. “Meet me in the training room after lunch.”

With that, he left, leaving Louis with feelings he couldn’t decipher let alone explain.

Nick wasn’t _nice_ , at least not to Louis. He had hated Louis from the second he had seen him, Louis was sure of it. He had always put it down to the fact that Nick had an obvious crush on Harry and Louis could see it but this was different. Nick seemed to _genuinely_ care about what had happened to Louis. None of it made sense.

Louis shuffled so he was lying back on the bed again and he pulled the blanket up over his legs. He rubbed a hand over his eyes and took a deep breath. He didn’t get long to himself before the door opened and Harry appeared a moment later, looking hesitant. The moment his gaze landed on Louis, his face lit up and he closed the distance between them in a few long strides.

“Hi,” he said, standing awkwardly next to Louis’ bed. 

“Hi,” Louis returned. He shifted and slid off the side of the bed, wrapping his arms around Harry’s middle in a tight hug. Harry’s arms automatically wound around his shoulders. Louis just breathed him in. He was warm and the hoodie he was wearing was impossibly soft against Louis’ cheek. He fisted his hands in the back of Harry’s hoodie, clutching the material tightly. Harry did the same, pressing closer than they had ever before. Louis squeezed Harry again. He figured they both needed the reassurance that the other was okay.

He barely remembered briefly waking the night before and Harry’s worried look before he went back to sleep but it had been enough to know that he never wanted to see that look on Harry’s face again.

They stayed in the spot next to Louis’ hospital bed, just holding each other tightly, neither of them seeming to want to make the first move to break their hold. Harry felt like home, felt safe and Louis needed to feel safe and warm. Harry pressed his nose into Louis’ hair, which he was sure was disgusting still from the day before. He hadn’t had a chance to wash at all yet and he desperately needed to but Harry didn’t seem to care. He felt the pressure of Harry’s lips near his forehead and he clenched his hands tighter in Harry’s clothes, pressing into the touch lightly.

“Alright?” Harry asked softly.

Louis pulled back enough to look at Harry properly. “Yeah,” he replied. “You know me, strong as an ox and all that.”

Harry’s lips quirked in a smile. “Are you allowed to leave then?”

Louis loosened his hold on Harry’s clothes when he stepped back a little more. “Er,” he started. “I don’t know. Doctor Peters left when Nick came in. I guess she’ll be back soon.”

“Nick was here?” Liam asked and Louis’ gaze snapped over to where Liam and Zayn were standing side by side, watching him and Harry hugging. 

“Yeah, just before,” Louis said. “Came to make me feel like shit, as usual.”

“What did he say?” Zayn asked, his brow furrowing.

“Said that I could’ve killed everyone if my powers had backfired,” Louis replied. “Then he told me I need to do extra training with him and that he wants me to start today.”

Harry let out a protesting noise. “That’s not right,” he said. “You should be _resting_ this weekend, not straining your powers more.”

Louis shrugged. “It’s okay,” he said reassuringly. “He’s right, in a way. I do need the extra training so I don’t surprise myself like that again. I _could_ have accidentally killed everyone if my powers had backfired. I need to get a better focus on them.” He patted Harry’s elbow twice before breaking the hold completely.

He stepped closer to Liam and gave him a quick, tight hug before hugging Zayn. Zayn’s arms held him in a vice like grip and Louis figured he had been silently worried more than anything. He kept a firm hold on Zayn, burying his face in the crook of Zayn’s neck. Zayn whispered in his ear that Louis had worried him and Louis apologised before kissing Zayn’s cheek softly.

“Where’s Niall?” he asked. 

“Cooking you breakfast,” Liam replied. “He wanted you to wake up to a full English so he and Ashley are upstairs now.”

Louis grinned. “Great. I hope Doctor Peters lets me go then.”

“She should do,” Zayn said. “She doesn’t have any reason to keep you any longer.”

Doctor Peters stepped into the room a second later. “Zayn’s right,” she started. “Louis, you’re free to go. You will need to report back whenever Mr Grimshaw sees fit but considering all of your vitals are fine, you can leave.”

“Good,” Louis said. He slipped his bare feet into his shoes and gave Doctor Peters his thanks before following his friends out of the medic wing.

Before they were even half a dozen paces out of the door, Harry grabbed Louis’ hand and laced their fingers together. Louis smiled and squeezed Harry’s hand gently, glad for the contact. They made their way upstairs and the moment they stepped foot in the kitchen, Louis had an armful of Niall. He smiled and hugged Niall back just as tightly. He was sure he was going to have bruised ribs after all of the hugging but he couldn’t bring himself to care. Once Niall finally let go, Ashley surprised him by hugging him as well. She seemed hesitant but the moment Louis wrapped his arms around her body, she visibly relaxed against him.

“You okay?” she asked.

Louis nodded. “Yeah, of course,” he replied. “Thanks for yesterday, by the way.”

“Anytime,” Ashley replied. She gave him a hesitant look before nodding once. “Breakfast is almost done,” she started. “I have managed to stop Niall from eating most of it as it was being cooked, so I hope you all appreciate that.”

“We do,” Louis said quickly. “We definitely do.”

“Sit down then,” Ashley said, ushering them all towards the table. 

Louis sat down next to Harry on one side of the table and Harry immediately pressed his knee against Louis’ own underneath the table like he couldn’t stop touching Louis even for a moment. He appreciated it – he needed the contact as much as Harry did. The accident on the motorway had scared him beyond belief and he was only all too thankful that Harry couldn’t feel what he was feeling because of the shield on his mind.

Niall served up breakfast and six pairs of hands all immediately filled their plates with the delicious smelling food. Louis’ stomach rumbled at the sight. He hadn’t eaten since lunch the day before and was extra hungry after all of the energy he had expelled. 

It felt normal when Harry reached over to Louis’ plate and pinched a piece of bacon off his plate. He smiled to himself and pushed his knee a little harder against Harry’s own. Harry grinned at him before popping the bacon into his mouth. It was mostly silent as everyone ate; the only sounds were knives and forks on the china plates until everyone was full enough to start talking again.

Niall chattered in general but Louis turned his attention to Harry. 

“You okay?” he asked softly.

Harry turned to him and nodded twice before reaching under the table to take Louis’ hand in his own. “Want to go back to our room?” 

Louis nodded and then stood, his chair scraping against the tiled floor. “We’re… uh,” he felt his cheeks heat up and Niall grinned cheekily at him. “Thanks for breakfast, Nialler. It was good.”

“Yeah, it was pretty great,” Niall agreed with him. He wouldn’t stop grinning at Louis and Louis poked his tongue out at him before leaving the kitchen, Harry in tow.

Once they got back to their bedroom, Louis noticed that his bed was unmade. He shot Harry a look and he only ducked his head sheepishly.

“We all stayed in here last night,” Harry replied as they made their way over to the bed. “Niall slept in your bed with me while Liam and Zayn slept in my bed.”

“Have they got their act together, then?” Louis asked as he walked around to his side of the bed.

Harry shrugged. “I have no idea,” he replied.

They both climbed into the bed together, facing each other as they laid down. Harry’s hand immediately came to sit on Louis’ waist. It was big and warm, even over the clothes Louis was wearing. He propped an elbow up and rested his head on the palm of his hand. He reached up and stroked Harry’s upper arm, trailing his fingers down the exposed skin where his t-shirt sleeve ended. Goosebumps appeared in its wake and Louis watched for a moment before his gaze locked with Harry’s.

“What happened?” Louis asked softly, as if speaking louder would break whatever spell they were under.

Harry visibly shrank away and rolled onto his back, looking up at the ceiling. “Um,” he started. “The guy in the car yesterday?” Louis stayed silent. He knew that Harry needed to take his time to tell the story his way. “He, uh, his name was Thomas. He… He has a s-son.”

Louis reached over and laid his hand to rest on top of Harry’s that was on his stomach. He slipped his fingers between Harry’s own and Harry immediately squeezed tightly.

“He died.”

Tears dripped out of the corners of Harry’s eyes and Louis reached over behind him to his bedside drawers to grab a tissue. He carefully dabbed at Harry’s eyes, brushing away the tears. Harry rolled back over and wrapped himself around Louis in a full body hug. Louis held on tightly, running a hand down Harry’s back in what he hoped was a soothing manner. 

“You’re a good man, Harry Styles,” Louis whispered. “Okay?”

Harry nodded against Louis’ shoulder and sobbed in his arms for a few long minutes. Louis wondered what else had happened on the motorway when he wasn’t looking. Harry was an utter wreck. He had never seen Harry, perfect and caring Harry, so distraught over anything before. Guilt flooded inside of him for being the one to ask Harry to be the one to stay with the man and calm him down. Louis could remember his crushed body sitting in the car and he couldn’t begin to imagine what Harry had felt from it all. 

“I…” Harry started, pulling back to look at Louis, his cheeks stained with tears. “I couldn’t save him though, Lou.”

“You did the best you could, Harry,” Louis replied softly. He reached over and ran his thumb over the mound of Harry’s cheekbone, swiping away tears with his thumb. “C’mon, go to sleep, baby cakes, you need it.”

Harry nodded again and settled into Louis’ arms a little better. Louis pulled the covers over them and stroked Harry’s scalp until he fell asleep, his breath puffing against Louis’ neck. Louis scrunched his eyes closed for a moment before reopening them. He kept his fingers moving against Harry’s head, hoping it soothed him somewhat. He couldn’t begin to imagine how Harry must have been feeling. Harry was so _young_ and didn’t need to be faced with such hardships so early on in his life. It was Louis’ job to protect him and he _failed_. He would never forgive himself for that. 

He watched Harry sleep for a while before closing his own eyes, figuring he could get some more sleep before he had to meet Nick. He had only been asleep for a few minutes when Harry started making sad, wounded noises. Louis’ eyes snapped open immediately. He shook Harry’s arm gently. 

“Harry,” he said. “C’mon, wake up, you’re having a nightmare.”

Harry stayed fast asleep, though, and began to cry in his sleep. His body was shaking and he clung tightly to Louis’ shirt. Louis was certain that Harry was going to rip the shirt in two with his strength at any moment.

“Harry,” he repeated a little louder. “Harry, wake up.”

Louis shook Harry again and Harry finally opened his eyes. He took one look at Louis before he rolled over, out of Louis’ arms. He shuffled to the edge of the bed and Louis immediately followed. 

“Harry,” he said. He wrapped his arms around Harry once more, pulling Harry back against his chest. “It’s okay; I promise that it’s okay.”

Harry’s broken sobs filled the room and Louis felt his heart breaking at every sound. “I… I can’t, Louis. Every time… It happens again. Everyone _dies_.”

Louis dropped a kiss to Harry’s shirt clad shoulder and buried his nose in the hair at the back of Harry’s head. The soft, curly strands tickled his nose a little but he didn’t mind. “Harry,” he repeated. “C’mon, breathe with me, okay? Push against my hand, I want to feel you breathing.”

Louis splayed his hand against Harry’s chest and he felt it steadily move in time with Harry’s breaths. His own breathing synced with Harry’s after a moment. Harry’s heart thumped against Louis’ hand until Harry had calmed down enough. 

“Lou?”

“Yeah?”

“Never leave me, okay?”

“Okay,” Louis promised.

~*~

Lessons with Nick started straight away and were intense in ways that Louis didn’t think they would be. Nick had him training for two to three hours three nights a week and it was exhausting.

They had started off simple, testing Louis’ strength at holding a force field around something for an extended time, holding one around himself while also being invisible. It was like his training used to be but something had changed and Louis wasn’t sure what to make of it. Nick had asked him to hold a force field around a moving object, while it kept moving further and further away from Louis. He wasn’t sure exactly what it would achieve and when he asked, Nick had just shrugged his question off.

“Today I want you to pull the force field as close to the person’s skin as possible, so it’s like a second skin,” Nick said. “I don’t want you to suffocate them, though; I know you can tweak your shields to allow oxygen. Then I want Liam to throw fireballs at them and if you’ve got the concentration right, they won’t get burned.”

Louis shot a worried look to Liam but nodded anyway. “Okay,” he said. 

“Alright, good,” Nick said with a smile. “Okay, Louis, put the force field around me. I _trust_ that you’ll keep me safe.”

Louis licked his lips and nodded. “Alright,” he agreed. He turned to face Nick properly and concentrated until the bubble like force field surrounded Nick. It shimmered in front of his eyes as Louis pushed it so it was closer to Nick’s skin. It took all of his concentration to hold it as close to Nick’s skin as possible without also cutting off his oxygen supply. He frowned, already feeling a headache forming behind his eyes from the concentration.

“Okay,” Nick said. “Liam, your turn.”

“Low intensity or full blast?” Liam asked.

“Go full,” Nick replied with a grin.

Louis’s eyebrows shot up but he forced himself to concentrate as hard as possible. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Liam throwing fire ball after fire ball at Nick. Each of them sizzling off the force field with a puff of smoke. Louis felt relief wash through him when he realised it was working.

“Keep it up, Louis,” Nick instructed. “Liam, come closer and put your flaming hands on my arms. I want to make sure that Louis’ force field can withstand the pressure.”

Liam nodded. He glanced over his shoulder at Louis and stepped in front of Nick. Louis watched as fire engulfed Liam’s hands, travelling all the way up to his suit covered elbows, making the silvery coloured material look a little orange under the fire. Liam reached out and put his hands on Nick’s arms. 

A few moments later, Nick laughed and Liam let go, flames extinguishing as he did. Louis dropped the force field and promptly sat on the ground. 

“Great work, Louis!” Nick said cheerfully. “That was amazing.”

Louis nodded, feeling exhausted. He gave Liam a grateful look when Liam joined him on the ground, pressing an energy drink into his hand. He cracked the cap on it and took a few long sips, feeling better the instant the liquid entered his system. 

Louis leaned heavily against Liam’s side, his head resting on Liam’s shoulder. He yawned and closed his eyes, needing to rest for a few minutes. 

“That was pretty good,” Liam said. “You’re really getting the hang of all this.”

“Thanks,” Louis replied, taking another sip from his can.

Nick sat down in front of them, crossing his legs underneath him. “I’m really impressed with your concentration levels, Louis,” he started. “After the accident on the motorway, I was expecting that you were going to take a lot longer to train but you’ve proved me wrong!”

“A good thing, I hope?” Louis asked warily.

Nick nodded. “A _very_ good thing,” he said. “Now, drink up. Before you go for the day, I want to test something with you and Liam while you’re both here. Take five more minutes okay?” Nick patted his shoulder and stood up, leaving them alone again.

“I’m so _tired_ though,” Louis said to Liam once Nick was out of earshot. “I don’t know how much more of this I can handle today.”

“It’s just this one more thing,” Liam replied. Whether he was reassuring Louis or himself, Louis wasn’t sure. “Then we can go to dinner, do our homework and sleep.”

Louis groaned. “Ugh, homework,” he replied. He flopped on his back on the hard floor and shut his eyes, wondering if he ignored the world that it would ignore him too. 

The five minutes passed far too quickly for Louis’ liking and he stood up, holding onto Liam as he did. He patted Liam’s huge biceps and grumbled under his breath about how stupidly fit Liam was. Liam just shook his head and grinned at Louis, bumping his shoulder against Louis’ own.

“Stupid boys from stupid Wolverhampton shouldn’t be so fit,” Louis grumbled. “With your stupid abs and your stupid charming smile.”

“Ease up, Tommo,” Liam teased. “If anyone were to hear, they’d think you have a thing for me.”

“And risk getting my dick ripped off by Zayn? No thanks,” Louis retorted. “Besides, it’s _your_ fault that you’re ridiculously fit. You should stop that right now.” He sniffed and turned his nose up at Liam who just laughed at him.

“Alright lads,” Nick said, interrupting them. “Liam, I want you to do something this time, Louis you only need to put your force field up when I tell you. And maybe turn invisible once or twice, too.” 

Louis nodded. That sounded a lot easier than he was expecting. He figured he had enough energy in him to produce a force field but he wasn’t sure how long he could hold it. He just hoped that either his invisibility or force field were needed for long periods of time or he’d probably collapse again.

“Okay,” Nick said with a grin and a clap of his hands together. “Louis, turn invisible.” Louis did so and stayed put. “Now, Liam, I want to see if you can use your heat vision to see where Louis is.”

“Okay,” Liam agreed. 

Liam had recently learned how to see people with his heat vision like infra-red. It had come as a bit of shock to Liam who could suddenly see people through walls from their heat signature alone. Nick had just told him that it was a part of his powers growing and developing as he did. He had spent some more time with Liam, working him through learning how to control it so he wasn’t seeing like that all of the time. 

“Yeah, I can see him,” Liam said a few moments later. Louis cheekily reached up and flipped him off. “Oi! I can see that!” 

Louis laughed loudly and dropped his hand to his side. “You were meant to.”

“Now, Louis, put up a force field around yourself,” Nick instructed.

Louis concentrated and did as requested, covering himself in his ever familiar bubble like force field. 

“I can’t see him anymore,” Liam commented straight away. “His entire heat signature has disappeared.”

“Sick,” Louis replied, turning himself visible again and lowering his force field. “That’ll come in handy when I want to sneak into your room then.” Liam made a face at Louis who just laughed at him. He closed the distance between them and threw an arm around Liam’s shoulders. “I won’t,” he said. “Often.”

Liam jabbed him in the side and they both looked to Nick expectantly.

“Alright, you can go,” he said exasperatedly. “Keep practicing, you two.”

“We will,” Louis said cheerfully as he dragged Liam from the room before Liam insisted on staying to do more work or something equally boring.

“Hey,” Liam said as they wandered down the corridor. “Your comment before… about Zayn…”

Louis stopped them in their tracks. “I – sorry,” he said. “I don’t _really_ think Zayn would rip my dick off.”

“No,” Liam said hastily. “That’s not what–” He sighed and ran a hand through his floppy light brown hair. 

“You need a haircut,” Louis said, stepping closer. He pushed Liam’s fringe back and to the side a little more. 

Liam shrugged and Louis dropped his hand, taking Liam’s in his own. Liam wasn’t overly affectionate with Louis, even still, but Louis figured Liam needed the comfort right then. “I like him. A lot. And it’s scary.”

“He likes you too,” Louis replied. “A _lot_.”

“Yeah?”

Louis nodded. “Yeah, you daft bastard,” he replied fondly. 

Liam smiled and ducked his head. “Cool.”

They fell silent as they walked the rest of the way to the lifts, stepping into one. Louis pushed the button for their floor so they could change out of their suits before going to dinner. He and Liam parted outside of their rooms and Louis stripped out of his suit the moment the door closed behind him. He quickly changed into a pair of jogging bottoms and pulled on a pair of slippers over his feet before crossing to Harry’s side of the room. He dug through one of Harry’s drawers and pulled out his favourite jumper. He slipped it on over his head and dipped his nose to press against the soft material. It smelled just like Harry and felt like a hug. He smiled to himself and left the room. He met Liam in the corridor and they made their way downstairs to the dining hall.

“How was training today?” Zayn asked as Liam sat down next to him. He saw Liam’s cheeks heat up a little and his hand suddenly burst into flames as he went to pick up the glass of water in front of his spot.

Louis snorted to himself as Liam hastily pulled back his hand, shaking it like it would help get rid of the fire. The flames died out pretty quickly and Liam slipped his hands under the table. 

“It was good,” Louis replied. “We figured out that Liam can’t see my heat signature if I’m using my force field.”

“Cool,” Zayn said. 

Harry dropped into the seat next to Louis a moment later, smiling brightly at all of them. “Is that my jumper?” he asked Louis.

“Yeah, what of it?” Louis asked, raising an eyebrow at Harry.

Harry grinned even wider. “Nothing,” he replied, his voice soft and happy sounding. “Nothing at all.”

Louis smiled to himself and hooked his ankle around Harry’s underneath the table as they ate dinner together.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warnings: slight ptsd, underage drinking, slight homophobic slurs, and slight violence.

Chapter Eight  
 _Harry_  


“Shh, it’s okay, I’m here, it’s okay.”

Harry’s eyes snapped open and Louis’ face filled his vision. He frowned down at Harry, his brow creased with worry and one hand cupping Harry’s cheek. Harry sat up groggily and rubbed at his eyes. 

“Sorry,” he said, his voice thick with sleep. “I thought it would’ve stopped by now.”

“Harry,” Louis started, voice laced with concern. 

Harry sighed and shuffled back against the headboard of Louis’ bed. He shoved his hand into his hair and pushed his fringe off his face. Louis shuffled next to him and Harry caught his hesitant gaze before taking Louis’ hand in his own. 

“I didn’t mean to wake you,” Harry said. He glanced out the window and saw that the sun had just started to rise if the colour of the sky was anything to go by. At least he hadn’t woken up Louis in the middle of the night again like he had every night during week.

“Harry,” Louis said softly. “Look at me.”

Harry turned his head and looked at Louis. Louis reached a hand up and cupped his cheek, his thumb stroking over Harry’s cheekbone lightly. Louis dropped his hand and laced their fingers together once more.

“I want you to wake me up, okay? I don’t want you to have these nightmares and not tell me about it.”

“It’s just every night, Lou,” Harry said brokenly. “I can’t get it out of my head. I…” He sighed heavily and tipped his head back to lean against the headboard. “The therapy Doctor Peters scheduled for me isn’t helping.”

“Love, it’s only been a few sessions,” Louis pointed out. “Give it time.” He squeezed Harry’s hand. “Besides, you’re not waking up every few hours. I call that progress.”

Harry nodded but stayed silent. Since the accident, he had been having nightmares every single night. Each time, he woke up in a cold sweat, with Louis hovering over him, concern in his eyes. Harry hated it. He hated that he had to witness someone dying in front of him. He hated that he could feel the emotions of every single person that had been involved in the accident on the motorway and he hated that his mind was giving him nightmares because of it. He just wanted to sleep the night through and not worry about whether he was going to wake up from a dream where he saw Louis’ severed body or Gemma being crushed under a truck or his mum being blown to pieces by an explosion. 

After the first few nights, Louis had insisted that Harry see Doctor Peters and see about getting some psychological help. Harry had been hesitant but because of his sensitive nature and his empathic ability, he was more susceptible to feeling overwhelmed when it came to things like he had experienced. 

He’d only had three sessions so far and most of them had been Harry talking about what had happened and what his nightmares entailed. Doctor Simmons, his psychiatrist, had given him exercises to do before sleep so that his mind would relax and Harry had to admit that since he had been doing them, he had only woken up near dawn after having nightmares, not a few times a night. It was hard, though. He was scared and everything was still fresh in his mind. He wanted to get through it, to be able to sleep properly again but a part of him felt like he didn’t deserve to. He knew he’d have to bring that up with Doctor Simmons during his next session.

“C’mon, let’s get breakfast, yeah?” Louis said after a while.

Harry nodded and climbed out of Louis’ bed. They had taken to sleeping in Louis’ bed every night since the accident. Harry didn’t want to sleep alone and Louis was more than accommodating. A couple of times during the week, Liam, Zayn and Niall had all managed to squeeze into Harry’s bed to sleep in the same room. He figured that the closeness was good for all of them by the way the three boys relaxed the instant they were in the same room. 

Harry shrugged out of his pyjamas, yawning as he did. He stretched out his sleep ridden muscles and wondered briefly if he would have enough time to do some yoga with Liam before their classes started. 

“Actually, I might go work out with Liam for a bit,” Harry said, looking over his shoulder at Louis. “You don’t mind, do you?”

Louis looked up. “Of course not,” he replied with a small smile.

Harry nodded and quickly changed into his workout clothes before leaving Louis alone in their bedroom. He headed for the lifts, thankful that they were empty so early on a morning. He saw Liam doing weights when he walked into the gym and he nodded at his friend.

“More nightmares?” Liam asked, concerned. 

“Yeah,” he replied with a shrug. “I was gonna ask if you wanted to do some yoga with me this morning?”

“Sure,” Liam agreed. “Let me just finish these last reps and then I’ll join you.”

Harry left the gym and set up the yoga room. He set the unlit candles down around the room and figured he’d ask Liam to light them when he came in. He turned the CD player on and then unrolled both his and Liam’s mats. 

Liam entered the room a few minutes later, sweaty but smiling. He lit the candles with the tip of his finger before pressing play on the CD player and getting into position with Harry. Harry breathed deeply and focused on the movements. It was easy doing yoga. His mind was focused solely on his breathing and the movements; he didn’t have the capacity to think of anything else while doing yoga. 

Liam’s steady breathing next to him was just as relaxing. It was comforting and familiar, both of which Harry needed. The stretch in his calves felt good, pulling just the right amount. 

The CD stopped after a while and Harry lay down on his back on the mat. He closed his eyes and for the first time since the accident, he wasn’t assaulted with the images of so many scared faces looking back at him helplessly.

“Want to talk?” Liam asked after a few long minutes of silence.

Harry cracked one eye open, glancing at Liam. He sighed and nodded, sitting up. He crossed his legs underneath himself and forced himself to sit upright. “I keep dreaming about Louis dying,” he said. “Every night it’s a different way. The ending is always the same: me holding his dead, bloody body in my hands.” He looked down at his hands, his mind conjuring pictures of the scenes from his dreams. His hands were always stained with blood – _Louis’_ blood – and it always left him feeling so empty and broken inside. 

“Harry,” Liam breathed. “I thought the therapy was helping?”

Harry shrugged. “I’m scared.”

“Of what?”

“What if they’re not dreams?” Harry asked, looking up. “What if they’re premonitions?”

“Harry, you’re an empath, not a precog,” Liam replied, scooting closer to Harry. He reached over and took both of Harry’s hands in his own. 

“What if I am, though?” Harry wondered. “And these dreams are telling me that Louis is going to die soon.” The silence between them was palpable. Harry was certain that his dreams, his _nightmares_ , were something more than just horrific projections of his own fears. He couldn’t bear to think about not having Louis in his life. He didn’t want to go through what they went through on the motorway. Having Louis collapse in front of him had been hard enough to deal with. Seeing his unmoving body lying there, on the hard road had been one of Harry’s worst fears. 

“Don’t you think,” Liam started after a few minutes of silence, “that it might be counterproductive to dwell on these dreams? That they _may_ not be premonitions, that they might just be your subconscious mind dealing with the stress of the last couple of weeks?”

Harry sucked his bottom lip between his teeth and shrugged. Liam squeezed his hands and Harry looked up at him. “It’s just so scary, Liam.”

“I know, Harry,” Liam said softly. “I may not have your empathic ability but I was there on the motorway, too, and it was scary. When that tank blew, I thought we were all going to die. It was the scariest moment of my life.”

“How do you deal with it?” Harry asked, scared.

Liam shrugged. “I figure I’m pretty damn lucky to be alive,” he started. “And that Louis is our friend with amazing abilities that protected us. _All_ of us. And it could have been a lot worse. You’re hurting still, which is understandable, it must have been awful out there for you, feeling everything that everyone else felt.” Harry nodded at this. “But you do need to move on. That’s what the therapy is for. 

“The accident helped me realise that life is really too short to dwell on things that might have happened or that _might_ happen in the future,” Liam continued. “We _might_ have died out there, but we didn’t, and we’re here, and I know it’s almost a joke coming from me, _Daddy Mutant_ and all,” he paused and squeezed Harry’s hands again and Harry smiled, ducking his head again. “But the accident brought me a lot closer to all of you guys. It made me see that there isn’t any point in holding back anymore.”

Harry’s head snapped up as he felt a rush of emotion coming from Liam through their joined hands. He stared at Liam, wide eyed. “You didn’t?”

Liam nodded. His cheeks flushed pink and he smiled, his eyes squinting from the movement. He looked utterly happy and Harry let out a happy noise before throwing his arms around Liam in a tight hug, knocking them both back onto the floor. Harry hovered over Liam and smiled down at him. 

“Liam,” Harry breathed. “I… _Wow_.”

Liam smiled and pushed Harry off him. 

“Well?” Harry prompted, sitting on his bottom again. He gave Liam an eager look and Liam shrugged once, a smile playing on his lips.

“It was nice,” he said.

“Who initiated it?” Harry pressed.

“I did,” Liam replied. “We were just… And yeah. It was nice.”

“ _Liam_ ,” Harry whined. “I need more details than _that_!”

“You’re such a perv,” Liam said and he stood up, letting go of Harry’s hands. “I don’t know what it all means yet, but I hope it means _something_.”

“I’m sure it does!” Harry said hastily as he stood as well. “It has to, right?”

Liam nodded. “Yeah,” he agreed. “It does.”

Harry grinned again and wrapped Liam in a tight hug. “I’m so happy for you.”

“Thank you,” Liam replied, patting Harry on the back. 

They rolled up their mats and put them away. Harry collected the candles and stored them away as well after extinguishing them. 

“You’ll be next, you know,” Liam said as they left the training room.

“Yeah?”

Liam nodded and bumped their shoulders together. “Yeah,” he replied with a smile. “I just know it.” Harry grinned, feeling a lot better than when he had woken up that morning. 

He and Liam had missed breakfast with the others but took a couple of muffins each from the kitchen on their floor that Harry had baked earlier in the week, along with a cup of tea each after they had showered. Harry grabbed his belongings and met the other boys downstairs outside of the English classroom for their first lesson. 

Harry saw Louis talking happily with Niall and Ashley and he stopped in his tracks, smiling at the sight. Liam was right, there was no time like the present to just _do_ things. Especially when he was scared of what the future held. He knew he would regret it forever if he didn’t do something about it. He had been in love with Louis from the first moment he saw him. He had been infatuated, at least, but now, he was definitely in love. Louis was _everything_ to him. He loved Louis’ kindness, his smile, his sense of humour. Louis always made him feel better about everything, no matter what, and he didn’t want to go another moment without Louis knowing it.

“Hi,” he said approaching his friends. 

They all repeated it back to him and Harry grinned. He slipped an arm across Louis’ shoulders and Louis automatically leant into Harry’s touch.

“I was wondering,” Harry started when there was a lull in the conversation. “Do you want to go out this weekend?”

Louis looked up at Harry and smiled. Harry’s stomach swooped pleasantly. “Yeah, I’d love to,” he said. “Niall was just saying how much he needs to go out and let loose, I think it’d be good for _all_ of us.” Harry’s stomach sank when he realised that Louis hadn’t figured out that Harry was specifically asking _him_ out, not everyone else.

“Count me out, lads,” Ashley said. “I’m heading home this weekend.”

“Next time,” Niall said, kissing her cheek. Ashley beamed at him and kissed him back.

“I’m sure Zayn and Liam would want to come, too,” Louis added. 

“Zayn and Liam what?” Zayn asked as he approached. He was holding Liam’s hand and Harry grinned to himself. 

“We’re going out this weekend!” Louis exclaimed. “And you’re not getting out of it!”

“Sounds good,” Zayn replied with a shrug.

Harry bit his lip. He loved hanging out with his friends but a part of him was annoyed that his suggestion had been misinterpreted. He figured he’d ask again another time when all of their friends weren’t around and Louis couldn’t confuse his offer for a group one.

Their English teacher, Mrs Fitz appeared a moment later and ushered them all into the classroom, berating one of the students near the start of the line for almost spilling her coffee. Harry followed everyone else into the classroom and sat where he normally did next to Louis at their two person desk. Niall sat on his right with Ashley while Liam and Zayn sat on the other side of Louis.

“Hey,” Niall hissed over to him when they were seated. “What was that about?”

Harry looked around and saw that Louis was talking animatedly with Liam and Zayn about something. “I was trying to ask Louis out.”

“Oh,” Niall said. “Shit.”

“It’s okay,” Harry replied. “Lou is right – we all need to go out. It’ll do us all good.”

Niall grinned at him. “And you can still make a move when we’re out,” he said. “Won’t hurt to try.”

“Yeah,” Harry said with a slow smile. “Maybe.”

Mrs Fitz then demanded their attention and Harry hastily opened his book to the right page. He listened as Mrs Fitz spoke about the book they had been reading as a class and jotted down notes when he thought it was appropriate, taking great care to get them down precisely. 

Half way through the lesson, Louis leaned over to him and put his chin on Harry’s shoulder while Mrs Fitz wasn’t looking. “We’re going to go out tomorrow night,” he said. “I think Liam and Zayn want to have a date night tonight.” His breath was hot on Harry’s neck and it left his skin prickling when Louis moved away.

Harry nodded. “Okay,” he agreed, leaning slightly into Louis a little more. Louis smiled at him and kept their arms pressed together as they worked. He didn’t care that Louis’ arm bumped against his as he wrote. 

He could still make it work, he decided as their lesson ended a while later. He put his belongings back into his bag and waited for Louis, who shot him a brilliant smile. Harry’s stomach flip flopped happily and he shot Louis a smile back.

“Looks like yoga worked this morning,” Louis commented as they walked to their next classroom, their arms brushing against each other’s.

“Yeah, it did,” Harry replied. “Liam and I had a good long talk afterwards. It put some things in perspective.”

“Good!” Louis said, hooking his arm through the crook of Harry’s elbow so they were walking together with their arms linked. “I worry about you, you know.”

“I know,” Harry replied, glancing over at Louis. “You don’t need to.”

Louis snorted. “I don’t think you’d be able to stop me.”

Harry smiled to himself. “Tomorrow night’s going to be fun,” he said, changing the subject. “Niall’s been complaining all week about wanting to go out.”

“Yeah, he said something about he feels less Irish every day that he doesn’t drink,” Louis added and Harry laughed. “I don’t see how _that_ works but whatever he has to tell himself, I guess.”

They stopped outside of their next classroom and Louis wrapped his arms around Harry in a hug, burying his face in the crook of Harry’s neck. Harry held Louis close, dropping his chin to rest on Louis’ shoulder. 

“Just because I didn’t get to do that this morning,” Louis muttered as he pulled away.

Harry nodded dumbly. He wanted to keep hugging Louis until they were forced to stop but he didn’t think their teachers would approve. It was bad enough being in a boarding school filled with hormonal teenagers, let alone ones who were dating or were overly physical with each other. 

Louis pulled back and Harry pouted. Louis laughed and flicked at Harry’s bottom lip with his finger. “C’mon, we’ve got things to learn that probably won’t make sense to us by the end of the year.” Harry smiled and eagerly followed Louis into the classroom.

~*~

“Duck!”

Harry quickly ducked out of the way of the piece of debris flying at his head. He heard it smash on the ground somewhere to his left and straightened up a moment later. He saw Niall battling their simulation creature of the week out of the corner of his eye, Liam hurling fireball after fireball at its chest. Zayn was flying somewhere overhead and every now and then, a bolt of lightning would shoot down from the clouds near wherever Zayn was.

“Thanks,” Harry said to Louis with a smile. 

“Anytime,” Louis replied and he grinned back at him and they progressed forwards again.

Niall let out a warrior like cry and there was the sickening crunch of metal before a robotic arm came hurtling towards them at full speed. Louis’ gasp was audible next to him and he quickly yanked Harry close by his arm. A split second before the arm hit them, a force field came up and surrounded them both. The arm hit the force field and fell to the ground with a thud.

Harry looked down at Louis who was still holding onto him, his arms wrapped around Harry’s back. Louis licked his lips and pulled away a moment later.

“A little help here, guys,” Niall called out as the simulation robot swung at Niall with its remaining arm. Niall jumped out of the way just as the arm came crashing down. Louis nodded at Harry and jogged off, leaving Harry staring after him. He shook his head and jogged closer to the others.

“Heads up,” Zayn said from above Harry. 

Lightning bolts shot out of Zayn’s outstretched hand and hit the robot straight in the chest. It stumbled backwards for a moment and Zayn landed on the ground next to Harry. Harry took a running leap at the robot and punched it straight in the chest, causing it to fall onto its back. 

“Niall, now!” Louis called. 

Niall twirled his metal pole in his hand before using his super speed to run up and stab the pole straight through the robot’s chest. Sparks flew out of the wound of the robot and Niall yanked his pole free. He sped back over to where Harry and Zayn were and shot them a wink. 

“Liam, melt it down,” Louis instructed.

Liam approached the robot and set his fire engulfed hands on the remaining arm of the robot, melting it to a puddle of molten metal. 

“Watch this,” Niall said once Liam had done. He outstretched a hand and made a weird gesture with it in the general direction of the melted robot and before Harry knew it, Niall was manipulating the metal into a completely new shape. He watched in awe as the metal pieces from the robot changed before his eyes, creating a table and chairs instead.

Zayn stepped forwards next and created a cloud above the new design. Rain poured out of the cloud a moment later, setting the metal in place with its coolness. Harry grinned at his friends and slapped Niall on the back.

“Well, I think that’s successfully defeated, don’t you say, boys?” Louis said as he approached from the other side. “Anyone for tea?”

Harry laughed as Niall created a kettle and mugs from the arm he had ripped off the robot earlier. They all sat down at the chairs and Liam lit a fire underneath the kettle after Zayn had used his powers to pour rainwater into it. Louis pulled teabags from Harry could only guess where and they had just started pouring out their tea when Nick came into the room.

“Good job, lads,” Nick said, taking Harry’s mug from him before he could even take his first sip. “Zayn, work on your lightning strength a little more, okay? I could see your focus slipping. And Louis, try and use your force fields in a more combat manner rather just than a protective one, okay? Like we’ve been training.”

Louis nodded from next to Harry at Nick’s words. “I will,” he replied and Harry smiled. It was the first time in ages he hadn’t given Nick attitude. He was quite proud of that, of how far Louis had come with his powers. He passed Harry his mug of tea after taking a sip and Harry bumped his knee against Louis to thank him while Nick still talked, giving them feedback on their training simulation.

“Alright, lads,” Nick said with a clap of his hands and a smile playing on his lips. “Good work this week. We’ll step it up a notch next week and see how you cope. Class dismissed.”

The simulation faded away, the war ground returning back to the normal room it once had been. The table stayed though, courtesy of Niall’s powers and would only disappear when he commanded it to. They finished off their cups of tea, Harry and Louis passing back the mug between them both, before Niall stood up.

“I’m gonna go see Ashley off now,” Niall said. “I’ll see you at dinner.”

The others stood as well and the table and their mugs disappeared before Harry’s very eyes while Niall waved his hand in a slight circular motion over it. He shot them all a grin before super speeding from the room.

“Li,” Louis said. “Do you want to stay back and train with me for a little longer?”

“Yeah, sure,” Liam replied. 

Louis smiled and Harry felt his heart sink a little. He had hoped that Louis would want to just hang out like they usually did after training.

“You staying?” Louis asked, turning to face Harry and Zayn.

“I can’t,” Zayn replied with a shrug. “I’ll see you later, babe.”

He stepped closer to Liam and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. Harry grinned at the sight and stuck the first two fingers of both of his hands in his mouth, wolf whistling at the two of them. Zayn flipped him off while still kissing Liam. They parted and gave each other a significant look before Zayn left the room.

“Up for it, Hazza?” Louis asked with a grin.

“Yeah, why not?” Harry nodded. 

“Alright, I’ll set up the simulation, then,” Liam said, crossing the room. He punched in some codes into the touchpad by the door and a moment later, the room changed beneath Harry’s feet. 

It was the same dirt ground he was used to and there were already half broken cars lying around, silently smouldering with flames. Harry surveyed the rest of his surroundings and noticed it was much of the same.

“I want to try using my force fields to knock things out,” Louis said and Harry looked up to see he was talking to Liam. “And maybe hold your fireballs in them and see if they can retain the intensity before dropping the shield.”

Liam nodded. “Lead the way, captain,” he replied. 

“What do you want me to do?” Harry asked.

A slow smile crossed Louis’ face. “Be bait.”

Apparently being the bait consisted of Harry standing around while Louis and Liam hid behind the flaming car shells. The robot was to sense him out and attack without preamble, which Harry could definitely handle, and then Louis wanted to come out and see if he could defeat it mostly on his own. At first, Harry had huffed and muttered about how it was a waste of his skills just being the bait, but the second he saw Louis in action, he didn’t mind. Louis was hurtling force field bubbles at the simulation robot like there was no tomorrow. 

Liam would occasionally throw out a fireball that a force field of Louis’ would encompass and he would use his powers to throw it at the robot. Harry stepped back and watched in awe as Louis ran up the air, his force fields forming steps so he could get to the robot’s head height. He yelled at Liam, who hurtled a fireball through the air at Louis. Louis’ hand quickly snapped out and a force field covered the fireball. Louis guided it close to the robot’s head and he jumped on the back of the robot’s shoulders. He swayed dangerously in the air before using his powers to guide the force field encased fireball closer to the robot’s mouth. 

Louis’ hands dug into the robot’s jaw and he literally shoved the fireball down the robot’s throat before he jumped off its shoulders, landing softly on the ground with the help of his force fields. 

Harry’s jaw dropped open as he saw the fireball begin to expand inside of the robot, its joints glowing orange, the flames coming out of the sides of its head. Louis held out both hands, palms out flat, as he created a thick, flat force field. He dropped it over the robot’s head and the robot crumpled to the ground at Louis’ feet. 

“Class dismissed,” Louis called out and the simulation disappeared.

“Holy shit,” Harry said in awe, staring at Louis with wide eyes. “That was… _whoa_.”

Louis beamed at him. “Thank you,” he replied. 

Liam smiled at Louis and patted him on the shoulder. “Soon enough, you won’t even need me to defeat the simulation, you’ll be able to do it on your own.”

Louis shook his head. “Nah, your fireballs do it every time.”

“Seriously, Louis,” Liam started. “I’ve been practicing with you for a while now, you could do it. You could probably even do that same trick without the fireball, just use your own powers to expand the force field inside the robot until it explodes.”

Louis looked thoughtful at that. “Huh,” he said. “Maybe I should try that next time.”

Liam nodded. “You should,” he replied. They started walking to the exit of the room and Liam shut the door behind them, locking it with the passcode. “It’ll be good to test yourself, at least. You already knew you could do everything you did today. Our training sessions are meant to utilise and develop your powers in ways that you didn’t know you could do. To strengthen them and to use them under high intensity situations so you don’t buckle under pressure.”

“Mostly I just don’t want to kill anyone by accident,” Louis said as he pushed the call button for the lifts. “I just need to focus my powers enough so if anything like the other week happens again, I can _control_ it rather than letting it control me.”

“You’re doing a lot better,” Liam added and Harry noticed the pride in his voice.

“You didn’t even need me,” Harry pointed out.

“Aww, Harry, I _always_ need you,” Louis said. He hooked his hand into the crook of Harry’s elbow and pulled him close for a brief moment before the lift appeared. He let go as he stepped inside and Harry couldn’t help but hope that Louis meant what he said, because he knew that he would always need Louis too.

~*~

On the Saturday afternoon, Harry stared at his clothes in his wardrobe and wondered what he should wear for that night. They had agreed the day before that they’d make a full evening of it and have dinner out as well and Harry wanted to look nice. He had already set out a pair of cream coloured chinos to wear and he had a pair of white shoes sitting on the floor at the end of his bed that he knew would go nicely but he was torn between wearing a blazer or not. He chewed on his lip and picked up a salmon coloured blazer that he hadn’t worn out before.

He took it off the coat hanger and placed it on the bed just over the trousers that were on there and stood back. He stared at it for a minute before opening the second drawer of his chest of drawers and pulled out a bright red polo shirt. He tucked it just under the blazer to see what it would look like and smiled to himself. He finally had the perfect outfit to go out in.

It was still only mid-afternoon but Harry wanted everything to go smoothly. He had a plan to talk to Louis and hopefully not get interrupted this time. He just wanted things to go perfectly.

He had showered after an intense work out with Liam that morning and he’d already had lunch with the boys. They weren’t leaving for another couple of hours yet, but Harry wanted to be prepared.

“Whatcha doing?” Louis asked. Harry looked up to see him coming into their room.

“Just choosing my clothes,” Harry replied. “I wanted to look nice tonight. You know, since we’re going out to dinner and all.”

Louis sat down on the edge of Harry’s bed. “Good choice,” he said with a smile and a nod to the clothes.

“Thanks,” Harry replied with a smile. “What are you up to?”

“Got bored watching Zayn and Liam snogging,” Louis said with a shrug. “So I thought I’d come and find my main man and here you are.”

Harry reached over and tugged on the beanie that Louis was wearing, pulling it down a bit over his eyes. “Nice to know I’m second choice.”

“We can go watch Liam and Zayn snogging together, if you want?” Louis offered with a cheeky grin as he pushed the beanie back up so he could see. “Zayn was getting a bit handsy when I left. They might be full on groping if we sneak back now.”

Harry laughed. “No, I’m good,” he replied, shaking his head. 

“I might go for a nap, then,” Louis said, getting up off Harry’s bed. “We’ve still got a few hours before we have to leave, right?”

“Yeah,” Harry replied with a nod. 

“Good,” Louis said. He pulled his phone out and tapped at the screen for a few moments before he crossed over to his side of the room and plugged it in to the charger. “Come nap with me. My alarm is set so we wake up with enough time before we leave.”

“Okay,” Harry agreed. He immediately crossed the room and toed off his shoes before climbing up on Louis’ bed next to him. Louis immediately wrapped his arms around Harry and Harry curled into his side in the all too familiar way of how they usually slept. Louis’s hand found its way into Harry’s hair and Harry felt his eyes drooping closed before he could even register what was happening. Louis was warm and soft wrapped around him and Harry fell asleep within minutes, his head on Louis’ chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. 

Zayn and Liam woke them before Louis’ alarm went off and they poked Harry in his cheek dimple until Harry batted their hands away. 

“You guys suck,” he muttered grumpily. 

“Probably a lot now they’re together,” Louis said through a yawn. He stretched his arms above his head, his shirt riding as he did, giving Harry a perfect glimpse of Louis’ soft, tanned skin. 

Harry blinked. “Wait,” he said before Zayn could get Louis back for his comment. “I didn’t have any nightmares.”

Louis beamed at him and threw his arms around Harry in a tight hug. “That’s awesome,” he said proudly. 

Liam and Zayn both offered their congratulations as well, Louis’ comment forgotten. Harry was excited. He hoped that he wouldn’t have many nightmares from then on out. He had had far too many to count since the accident and he could definitely use a full night without them. He hoped that night when they got back home to sleep that night that he wouldn’t have them then, either. 

“C’mon you two,” Liam said. “We’d better leave or we won’t make our reservation tonight.”

Harry got out of Louis’ bed and listened as Louis bantered with Liam and Zayn while he changed into his chosen outfit. He was ready within a few minutes, shaking out his hair and pushing it to the side again before turning to face his friends. 

“Did we all accidentally colour coordinate?” Louis asked as Harry re-joined them, straightening his suspenders so they sat on his shoulders properly. Louis had put on a pair of bright red jeans that stopped just above his ankle, showing off his sockless feet in his shoes. Harry glanced at Zayn who was wearing a red jumper over a blue polo shirt and Liam had red shoes on. He laughed loudly. 

“We’re a superhero boy band,” Harry said with a grin. 

Niall entered the room a moment later, also wearing dark red trousers. He grinned at them all and laughed when Harry pointed out that they all coordinated in some way or another.

“It’ll be easy to find each other then,” Niall said. “But I’m not changing again, so you can all deal with matching me.”

“Hey, I picked out my clothes first,” Harry protested. 

“Nah, mate, I’ve been wearing this all day,” Niall replied.

“It doesn’t matter,” Liam said. “We’re all dressed and ready to go, so we should.”

“Louis, you’ve got first driving shift,” Zayn said, throwing Louis the car keys. Louis grinned widely and Niall let out a strangled groan.

“That means I’m going to be in the backseat with those two sucking each other’s faces off,” Niall complained. “Can I call shotgun?” 

“Nope,” Louis replied with a cheeky grin. “Harry already called it.” He threw Harry a wink and Harry just grinned. 

“Fine,” Niall grumbled as they left Louis and Harry’s room for the school parking garage. 

Harry climbed into the front passenger seat while Liam, Zayn and Niall climbed into the back, Niall still grumbling about swapping with Harry at the first stop they took. To placate him, Louis promised that Niall could ride shotgun on the way back home. It seemed to satisfy Niall enough as they started the drive. 

It only took a couple of hours to get out of Scotland and to the restaurant that Liam had picked. The drive was spent playing car games, mostly so that Liam and Zayn wouldn’t spend the entire time kissing. A few rounds of I Spy later, Louis demanded that they change the game, which resulted in Niall rapping in the backseat, rather brilliantly, Harry thought, and Liam joining in with him. Harry had twisted in his seat and watched the two, bobbing his head along to the beat, impressed with their skill. 

“We’re here,” Liam said. “You can park around the corner.” 

Louis put the car’s indicator on and turned the corner that was just up ahead. He pulled into a free parking space and they all clambered out of the car. Louis locked the car behind him as they started walking towards the restaurant, Liam and Zayn leading them. 

It was a posh restaurant, Harry thought as they stepped inside. Not overly posh but nice enough that Harry felt a little awkward. They were led to their table and Harry shrugged off his blazer and hung it over the back of his chair before sitting down. He looked around, taking in the other patrons. The mood of the restaurant was soothing and Harry could feel contentment coming off most of the people in the dining area. He closed his eyes briefly so he could focus on not feeling so much. A hand slipped into his under the table and Harry looked up to see Louis giving him a small smile. He squeezed Louis’ fingers gently and only let go of his hand when a lovely female server approached their table to take drinks.

“I’ll have a beer,” Niall said. 

Their server, Lilly, her nametag read, raised an eyebrow at Niall. “You look younger than my twelve year old brother,” she said. “Try that again?”

“Coke,” Niall replied, easily, shooting Lilly a grin. 

She jotted down their drink orders and said that she would be back soon. Liam rounded on Niall the second she was out of earshot.

“You’re ridiculous,” Liam said.

“I’m _Irish_ ,” Niall replied. “It’s alright, I’ll just drink later when we get to the pub.”

Liam huffed, exasperated and Louis giggled into his hand from beside Harry. 

“I wish Ash had been able to come,” Niall said. “I feel like the fifth wheel here.”

“I’ll keep you company, Nialler!” Louis said, throwing his arm around Niall’s shoulders. He made a kissy face and Niall just swatted at him until Louis sat back in his seat properly, laughing to himself.

“Lunatics, the lot of you,” Niall groused. 

“I’m going for a smoke,” Zayn said, standing up. Liam got up too and they headed for the exit together. 

“Ten quid says they come back looking significantly rumpled,” Louis said.

“No bet,” Harry and Niall replied in unison, grinning at each other after they had spoken. Niall held out his fist and Harry leaned over Louis to bump it with his own. 

Lilly approached the table with their drinks while Liam and Zayn were still outside. Harry said which drink belonged to each of them and she set them down in their spots.

“I’ll come back for your meal order soon,” she said as she turned to walk away. Harry thanked her and gave her a smile and she shot him a wink before leaving them alone. 

He turned back to the table and noticed Louis’ frowning face looking over Harry’s shoulder at something.

“Lou, you alright?” Harry asked, concerned.

Louis nodded tightly. “I’m fine,” he replied. Harry bit his lip but nodded and picked up his drink to have a sip. Liam and Zayn came back into the restaurant a few minutes later, holding hands and looking a little rumpled. Liam hastily straightened his jumper before sitting down and Harry caught Niall’s gaze with a grin. 

“Shut up,” Zayn said before they could say anything. 

“What are you thinking of getting?” Louis asked Harry. He leaned over into Harry’s space a little more, holding his menu up so they could both see it.

Harry placed his hand on Louis’ thigh, resting it there. “I was thinking the chicken parma,” he replied. 

Louis nodded and he slipped his hand underneath the table, covering Harry’s resting on his thigh. Their fingers slotted together easily and Harry smiled to himself. “I was looking at that too,” he said. “But I think I might go with the risotto, it looks nice. Or maybe the pork.”

“The pork sounds nice,” Harry commented. Louis squeezed at Harry’s hand and nodded.

“Pork it is, then,” he said with a smile. He kept holding Harry’s hand under the table and closed the menu book with his free hand. 

They chatted between themselves while the others decided what they wanted to order and Harry glanced at Louis, taking in his entire beautiful face. Louis’ tongue darted out to lick his lips and Harry’s gaze automatically dropped to them. He wished that he had the courage to tell Louis right there how he felt about him. He knew it wasn’t the right time, though, especially not when Lilly approached their table to take their order.

Harry placed his order and smiled up at Lilly who jotted down what he wanted before she went around the table, leaving Louis for last. Once their orders had been placed, Louis got up to go to the toilets and Niall scooted over into Louis’ vacated seat.

“What is with you two?” Niall asked immediately. 

“What do you mean?” Harry wondered.

“He’s holding your hand under the table, giving the waitress death glares when she smiles at you,” Niall said. “Are you two finally together or what?”

Harry bit his lip. “No,” he said slowly, voice quiet. “I mean, it’s weird. He acts like he’s my boyfriend a lot of the time but nothing’s ever been said. We hold hands all the time and we sleep next to each other every night. I just don’t know.” He sighed and chewed his lip again. “I’m completely in love with him, though.”

“You two are daft,” Niall replied exasperatedly. “You two need to get it on more than Liam and Zayn did and that’s been building for _years_.”

Harry sighed. “I’ve been trying to ask him out for weeks,” he admitted. “Every time I ask him if he wants to do something, he thinks I’m asking _everyone_ and I don’t have the heart to tell him that I just wanted it to be him and me.”

You need to tell him, Haz, and _soon_ ,” Niall said. “I’m getting blue balls just watching you two dance around each other. It’s ridiculous.”

“Oi, Niall, get out of my seat,” Louis berated as he approached the table.

“Just keeping it warm for you, Lou,” Niall replied with a cheeky grin. Louis clipped Niall over the back of his head with his hand before sitting back down next to Harry. 

Harry immediately reached for Louis’ hand and laced their fingers together. Louis gave him a soft, happy smile which Harry returned. His stomach swooped pleasantly at the smile Louis gave him and they turned their attention back to the rest of the table. Niall and Zayn were having a conversation about football that Harry couldn’t really follow and every now and then, Louis would interject something rather loudly, causing a few people to look over at them in annoyance. Harry didn’t care, though. He had his four best friends with him and he was going to have a good night with them.

Lilly came back with their dinner a short while later and Harry flashed her a grin. Louis’ hand tightened in his own ever so slightly when she winked down at him before leaving. He glanced over at Louis’ plate and then back at his own. 

“Lou,” Harry started. “Yours looks good, want to trade?”

Louis huffed and swapped plates with Harry without any question. Harry grinned at him and started to cut into his new dinner. The pork tasted amazing, Harry decided as he bit into it. Louis had the right idea ordering it – Harry shouldn’t have gone with the chicken at all. Though when he looked over at the chicken in front of Louis, he decided that it looked pretty good as well. 

Wordlessly, a forkful of chicken appeared in front of Harry. He leaned forwards and wrapped his lips around the fork, taking the food off it, chewing slowly. 

“That’s nice,” Harry replied.

“Do you want to trade back?” Louis asked.

Harry looked down at the pork in front of him and the chicken in front of Louis and nodded. “Please?”

Louis picked the plates up and switched them again. Harry bumped his knee against Louis’ under the table and cut another piece off his chicken to eat it, wriggling a little in his seat in happiness. Louis really was the best friend ever.

Harry looked up a moment later to find Niall staring at him, his mouth slightly agape.

“What?” Harry asked.

Niall shook his head and turned his attention back to his food. “Nothing,” he said. “You’re just weird with food, mate.”

“Coming from you, Niall? That’s a bit rich,” Louis interjected. 

Harry smiled at Louis and shrugged. “I like food,” he replied.

“So do I, mate, but you don’t see me pinching off everyone’s plate,” Niall said.

“Don’t worry about it, Harry,” Louis said. “Because I don’t mind sharing.”

Harry beamed at him and bumped his knee against Louis’ under the table. 

“This is why Liam and I should just go out by ourselves,” Zayn said a moment later. “You lot are strange.”

“But you love us, Zayn, you wouldn’t want us to change,” Louis said sweetly, batting his eyelashes at Zayn who just shook his head at Louis and turned back to his dinner. 

Halfway through his dinner, Harry looked over at Louis’ plate again and reached over to stab his fork through a piece of pork. He chewed on it slowly and hummed in pleasure to himself, it really did taste delicious. He turned back to his chicken and offered Louis a piece, which he took gratefully. Harry stared at Louis’ lips a beat too long and he turned back to his plate, cheeks heating up in embarrassment. 

“Where’s mine, then?” Niall asked. “Since you’re so into sharing.”

“I only share with Harry, not rude little Irish boys,” Louis replied. Harry bit back a laugh as Niall’s mouth fell open. 

“Jeez, Tommo,” Liam interjected, shaking his head. “That’s a bit rude.”

Louis shrugged. “That’s what he gets for picking on Harry,” he said but he stabbed his fork into the remains of his pork. He passed it off to Niall and Harry let out a whimper as he saw it land on Niall’s plate. “There, now quit complaining.”

“But Niall had so much already,” Harry whined. “Why didn’t you give it to me?”

“I’ll share dessert with you, okay?” Louis amended and Harry grinned. 

“Okay,” he agreed easily. He finished off his dinner and hooked his ankle around Louis’ own underneath the table. Louis smiled back at him and picked up his drink to finish off.

“I’m going out for another smoke,” Zayn said a few minutes later. “Let me know when you order dessert.”

“We will,” Liam replied.

Zayn dipped his head and kissed Liam softly on the lips before leaving them. Harry glanced at Liam, who had a happy smile on his face. Since they had got together, both Zayn and Liam had been wearing smiles a lot more. It was nice, Harry thought. He was glad that his friends could make each other happy. 

He turned his gaze to Louis and wondered if they would be able to do the same thing. He hoped so. He didn’t care how long it took to get there; he just wanted it to happen. Louis was perfect, in Harry’s mind. He had the biggest heart that Harry knew of. He always made Harry laugh, even when his jokes weren’t that funny and he had the nicest smile that Harry had ever seen. He was completely head over heels in love with his best friend and he just wanted to shout it from the roof tops because that’s just how happy Louis made him.

Harry was certain that if he could make Louis happy even a fraction of how happy Louis made him, then he would be doing alright. Louis was everything to Harry. 

“Here are the dessert menus,” Lilly said as she approached a moment later. She passed out the menus and Liam took two, setting one in Zayn’s empty spot before he pulled out his phone. “I’ll be back soon to take your order.”

Harry said his thanks and smiled at her before he opened his menu and glanced over at Louis. “So, what are we getting?” he asked.

Louis looked up at Harry and scooted closer. “I want something with chocolate,” he replied. “Should we get a chocolate mousse?”

Harry turned his gaze back to the menu. “Yeah, but we should get something else since Niall and I ate most of your dinner.”

Louis hummed. “Okay.”

Harry glanced back at his menu and spotted something. “What about the iced cherry Bakewell tart?” he suggested. “We could get ice cream with it.”

Louis leaned over into Harry’s space and looked at his menu. “Yeah, that sounds good.”

Harry grinned and took both of their menus. He closed them and set them down in front of him. “Tonight’s been nice,” he said.

“Yeah, it has,” Louis agreed. “We should do it more often.”

“Yeah, we should,” Harry said. His gaze dropped to Louis’ mouth for a moment before tearing his gaze away. He picked up his drink and fiddled with the straw before taking a sip. He set it back down and tried to focus on what Liam and Zayn were saying, his finger idly drawing patterns in the condensation on the glass. 

“I wonder if I can order a whole apple tart?” Niall wondered and Harry focused his gaze on him.

“If you’re paying for it, they may not mind,” Harry replied. “You’ll have to ask Lilly when she comes back to take our orders.”

“I reckon I will,” Niall said. “I got a look at the apple tart in the display window before and it looks just like me mum makes it.”

“What if Li and I want apple tart?” Zayn asked Niall, raising his eyebrows at him. Niall huffed and closed his dessert menu. 

“I guess I can share,” Niall replied. “But I want most of it for me. I might get cream on it, too.”

Lilly came back a few moments later and took their order. Much to Niall’s happiness, he was able to order an entire apple tart, though not before Lilly gave him a strange look, raising an eyebrow at him. 

“He can eat it all,” Harry said. “Niall likes his food.”

Lilly hummed. “You’d just think after the three main courses he ordered that he’d be full by now.”

“Nah,” Niall said as he leaned back in his seat, patting his stomach. “I’ve got a fast metabolism.”

“Will that be all, boys?” Lilly asked, looking up from her notepad. 

“Could I get two forks and two spoons with my dessert, please?” Harry asked.

Lilly nodded. “Sure,” she replied. “Are you alright for drinks?”

“Could we get a pot of tea for the table?” Louis asked. “Yorkshire tea, if you have it.”

“Of course,” Lilly replied, jotting that down as well. “I’ll be back with your dessert and tea soon.”

“Thanks,” Louis replied, smiling at her.

“What should we do after this?” Zayn asked. “It’ll be too early to go to the pub, yeah?”

Niall looked at his phone for the time. “Nah, it’s never too early to start drinking.”

“I wouldn’t mind going for a bit of a walk first,” Liam said. 

“How far away is the pub, Niall?” Louis asked.

“A few streets from here,” Niall said. “So probably a mile or two.”

“How about we just walk there?” Louis suggested. “That way Liam gets his walk in and we can kill some time, too.”

“Yeah, alright,” Niall replied with a nod. 

Liam shot Louis a thankful glance that Harry couldn’t help but notice. He bumped his knee against Louis’ own under the table but Louis shook his head at Harry. He resolved to ask Louis later. 

Lilly came back with the pot of tea and Niall’s apple tart first, balancing the tray carefully in her hands. She set the pot down in front of Louis before putting the apple tart in front of Niall, who immediately dug his fork in to get a good serving, shovelling it into his mouth. Harry was a little jealous of his tart but he knew that the desserts he and Louis had chosen would be better. 

Once they all had their desserts, and a cup of tea each at Louis’ insistence, Harry picked up his fork. He offered the first bite to Louis, who leaned over and wrapped his lips around Harry’s fork. Harry figured he should have learned not to do that from earlier as he couldn’t stop staring at Louis’ mouth. 

“It’s good,” Louis said, licking his lips, crumbs from the tart’s crust sticking to them. Harry nodded and turned his attention back to the plate so he could have a bite himself. He carefully avoided watching Louis’ fork going into his mouth with piece of tart on it lest he make a fool of himself in public. 

They polished off the tart together before Louis slid the bowl of chocolate mousse, with fresh whipped cream on top, in front of them. 

“Here, you can have the first bite of this one,” Louis said, digging his spoon in. He held it out for Harry to take a bite from and he locked gazes with Louis as he leaned across the table to take wrap his lips around the spoon.

“Christ,” Niall said from next to Louis.

“What?” Louis asked, turning to look at him.

“…Nothing,” Niall replied. Harry caught his gaze and swallowed the mousse in his mouth, his tongue sticky with the chocolate goodness. 

He licked his lips and took a sip of his tea to wash it down. “That’s good, Lou,” he said and Louis smiled at him before taking his own spoonful. 

Harry focused on the dessert again, rather than Louis’ lips moving in ways that Harry thought were way too erotic to just be consuming food. He felt heat pool in his stomach at the thought and forced his gaze away from Louis, instead over to Liam and Zayn who were talking quietly together, completely wrapped up in each other. They shared their dessert as well but it didn’t look anywhere near as sensual as Louis sharing the mousse or tart with Harry. 

“You can have the rest, Lou,” Harry said. “I’m full.”

“Okay,” Louis replied with a shrug, digging his spoon in once more. 

Harry reached for his tea and took a long sip, letting the warm liquid calm his insides. He was certain that he was in too deep with Louis if just watching him eat dessert turned him on. He nursed his cup of tea until it was all gone and reached for the pot once more, only to find it empty.

“You can have some of mine,” Louis offered and Harry shook his head. 

“I’m good,” Harry replied. “You drink your tea; I know how much you love it.”

Louis reached under the table to pat Harry’s thigh before squeezing it lightly, leaving his hand there while he finished off his tea.

“Are we ready to go then?” Liam asked after a few more minutes. 

“I just need the loo,” Harry said. 

“Yeah, me too,” Louis added. 

Harry followed Louis to the restaurant’s toilets and went about his business. He caught Louis’ gaze in the mirror when they were washing their hands and Louis grinned at him.

“Not sure about your hair,” Louis said, nodding at Harry’s reflection. 

Harry dried off his hands and shook his hair out, pushing it to the side again.

“Much better,” Louis said, reaching over to fix a strand that was near Harry’s eye. “C’mon, let’s go get drunk.”

“Okay,” Harry said slowly. Louis passed him and opened the door. Harry took a deep breath before following Louis back to where the others were waiting.

“I’ve already paid the bill,” Zayn said. “We can just go.”

“My blazer…” Harry said, turning to go back and get it.

“I’ve got it,” Liam said, holding it up. Harry sighed in relief and accepted it from Liam, shrugging it on. 

As they left the restaurant, Harry shoved his hands in the pockets of his blazer and frowned when he found something in one of the pockets that he knew wasn’t there before. He pulled out a small slip of paper that was folded in half. He turned it over in his hand before unfolding it. There, in a rushed script was Lilly’s name and her phone number.

“Whatcha got there, Harry?” Louis asked as he fell into step with him.

“Phone number,” Harry mumbled.

Louis snatched it from Harry and huffed. “Hey, Niall!” he called out loudly. “Dare me to eat this piece of paper?”

“Go on!” Niall responded and before Harry could react, Louis had shoved the scrap piece of paper with Lilly’s phone number on it into his mouth, chewing obnoxiously loudly.

“That was gross,” Louis said when he was done, sticking his tongue out and making a face. “Remind me not to eat paper again.”

“You shouldn’t have to be reminded, Lou,” Liam reprimanded. “You’re not three anymore.”

“I _might_ be,” Louis retaliated. 

“C’mon, babe,” Zayn said as he reached for Liam’s hand. “This is Louis we’re talking about. He’s your regular Peter Pan.”

Louis grinned at them and took a bow from where he was walking in the middle of the street. “Got it in one, Malik.”

“Lou,” Harry started when the others had started to walk ahead of them a little more. “Why’d you eat that?”

“It’s not like you’re going to call her, is it?” Louis replied with a shrug of his shoulders. “You’re not even into girls, right?”

“Yeah, but that’s rude,” Harry said. “I could’ve called her just to say I’m not interested…”

“Harry,” Louis said, stopping in his tracks. Harry stopped as well and stared at Louis, who reached for Harry’s hand that was closest to him. “Women like that only want one thing, Haz,” he continued. “And I’m sure she would be the one to think that she can _change you_ so you were straight again.”

Harry frowned. “I don’t think she would have,” he replied.

Louis laced their fingers together. “Well, now you never have to find out,” he said, squeezing Harry’s fingers gently. “Besides, you’ve got me, and I’m better than a pair of boobs any day!”

Harry smiled slightly. “You are,” he agreed.

They caught up to the others, still holding hands. It shot a thrill through Harry to be walking the streets with Louis, holding his hand. 

“Now I _really_ wish Ash was here,” Niall grumbled a moment later.

Louis promptly let go of Harry’s hand and threw his arm around Niall’s shoulder. “I’ll hold your hand, Niall,” he said. He dropped the arm around Niall’s shoulder and grabbed his hand. Harry bit his lip as he watched Louis’ fingers slip between Niall’s own. It didn’t look right. “C’mon, Harry, take Niall’s other hand so no one is left out!”

Harry obligingly took Niall’s other hand in his own as they walked. It wasn’t the same as holding Louis’ hand, Harry thought. Niall’s hand was bigger than Louis’ and their fingers didn’t slot together as nicely. Even holding Zayn’s hand was better than holding Niall’s, Harry thought.

They made it to the pub a short while later after Niall had directed them where to go. They all had fake IDs that Niall had given them earlier in the week so they could buy alcohol at the bar. Harry didn’t think he looked like he was over eighteen but his fake ID had him at nineteen. Niall had said it made it seem more believable but Harry didn’t think it did. Louis was the only one out of all of them who could legally drink. He didn’t think that Louis would if they all weren’t able to drink, though.

“Does everyone want a beer to start off with?” Louis asked once they had found a circular booth near the pool tables at the back of the bar that would easily fit all five of them. “I’ll get the first round.”

“Yeah, beer is good for me,” Niall said eagerly. “Get me two though, yeah?”

Louis rolled his eyes but nodded. Liam and Zayn agreed to a beer each and Louis turned to Harry expectantly. 

“Um,” Harry started. “Can you get me a cosmopolitan?” 

Louis smiled at Harry. “Sure,” he replied. 

Harry beamed at him and Louis headed off to order their drinks. 

“Jeez, Harry, could you order a more girly drink?” Niall teased.

“They’re nice,” Harry replied, picking at the hem of his blazer.

“When have you ever had a cosmopolitan?” Zayn wondered, raising an eyebrow at Harry in disbelief.

“Gemma gave me some of hers one time,” Harry replied. “It tasted nice.”

Louis returned a short while later with four beers and two cosmopolitan drinks. Harry looked up at him and Louis just winked before taking the tray back to the bar. 

“God, he really likes you,” Niall muttered before he drank half of his pint of beer in one hit. 

Harry grinned to himself and took one of the drinks, leaving the other one for Louis. He took a sip, pleased to note that it tasted exactly how he remembered it. Louis slid into the booth next to Harry a moment later and picked up his drink. Their thighs pressed against each other’s, warming Harry’s leg through the material of his trousers. 

“We’re doing shots next,” Niall said. “And Payno, I’m going to need you to set fire to them.”

Liam looked up and shook his head. “No, no, no, Niall. _No_. I’m not using my powers in public.”

“C’mon, Li,” Niall said. “It’s not like anyone can see us back here. Besides, it’ll be cool.”

Liam rolled his eyes. “Maybe just once.” 

Niall beamed at him and downed the rest of his first beer. “Alright, lads, who wants to play pool first?”

“I’ll give it a go,” Zayn said, shuffling out of the booth with Niall. 

“I’ll rack it up,” Niall said, carrying his beer over to the pool table to put it on the bench just behind it. Harry watched as Niall set the table up and Zayn chalked two cues for them. He had watched Niall play before and he was quite good but he had never seen Zayn play. 

He sipped at his drink while he watched Niall break, easily sinking one of the balls into a corner pocket on his first go. He shot Zayn a wink and lined up another ball but missed getting it into the pocket.

“Babe, kiss for luck?” Zayn asked. Liam slid out of the booth and crossed over to Zayn, kissing him soundly on the lips. Niall made gagging noises and complained loudly about Zayn stalling the game.

Harry’s jaw, along with both Niall’s and Louis’, dropped open as Zayn sunk his first ball, then a second, and then a third. He missed the fourth ball and Niall let out an indignant squawk. 

“I might go get the next round of drinks,” Louis said, standing up. “Clearly this game is going to be over sooner than we think and I want to play the winner.”

He got up and Harry’s leg immediately felt cold. He rubbed at it and watched as Niall got another two balls into a pocket. Zayn moved around the pool table and with focused ease pocketed another three, leaving only a few balls left of his on the table. 

“Here,” Louis said, setting down the tray of drinks onto the table. “I got you a different drink this time. I figured you you’d like a sex on the beach if you liked cosmopolitans so much.”

“Thanks, Lou,” Harry replied, taking off the larger glass before setting his empty cosmopolitan drink on there.

“I can’t believe someone actually beat me at pool!” Niall said loudly as he walked back over to their booth. “Louis! I love you! You got shots! Payno, get your arse over here.” 

Liam and Zayn joined them at the table where Louis had laid out five shots. He took their empty glasses back to the bar and re-joined them a moment later.

“Light ’em up, Li,” Louis said. 

Liam sighed and looked around before lighting each shot with the tip of his finger. 

“Cheers, lads!” Niall said excitedly, picking up his still flaming drink.

Harry waited for the fire to burn out before downing the shot. He winced at the taste and made a face once it had gone down. He quickly picked up his new drink and took a large sip to chase away the burning taste of the shot. 

“I’m out for a bit,” Zayn said, passing his pool cue to Louis. “It’s too easy to win against you guys.”

Niall looked put out but he shrugged. “Alright, Lou, it’s you and me now.”

“Alright,” Louis said. He picked up his drink and turned to Liam. “Babe, kiss for luck?” he asked with a cheeky grin.

Zayn swiftly kicked Louis in the shin and Louis whined loudly before he hobbled over to the pool table where Niall was already setting up the balls. 

“That was a little mean,” Harry said but Zayn just shrugged. 

“He should be asking _you_ for that, not Liam,” Zayn replied, picking up his beer. 

Harry twirled the straw in his drink before taking another sip from it. He turned his attention to the game of pool between Niall and Louis, which seemed a little more evenly matched from the looks on their faces. They missed a few balls each but the game soon came to an end but Louis requested that they play again, best two out of three, probably since he had lost, Harry figured.

Niall agreed and racked up the balls once more. Harry got out of his seat and perched on a bar stool near the pool table so he could watch a little closer. Louis grinned at him and reached for Harry’s drink. He took a sip before passing it wordlessly back to Harry. 

“I’m breaking this time,” Louis said, moving to the pool table again. Niall stepped aside and Louis bent over the table to break. Harry’s gaze went to Louis’ bottom automatically, unable to help himself with the alcohol in his system and the way the tight red material clung to Louis’ legs and arse. Harry licked his lips, tasting the sticky drink on them before he lazily looked up at the game. He saw Louis smirking at him and he promptly flushed at getting caught. 

Niall took his shot but missed the pocket he was aiming for. He cursed and Louis stepped up to the table again. He looked over his shoulder at Harry before bending over again and Harry swore his heart skipped a beat. He blinked and kept his eyes closed so he wouldn’t stare. He brought his drink up to his mouth, his eyes still closed, and poked himself in the cheek with the straw.

“That goes in here, dummy,” Louis said. Harry’s eyes opened and Louis face flooded his vision with how close he was. Louis bent the straw and guided it into Harry’s mouth, which he opened automatically, lips closing around it. He took a sip, his eyes locked with Louis’ own. “There, that’s better.”

He placed the glass behind Harry on the bench and swiped his thumb across the corner of Harry’s mouth before sucking the digit into his own. Harry’s mouth dropped open and he let out a whine. Louis suddenly moved away and Harry blinked hard, realising that they weren’t alone but in a pub filled with people. He coughed awkwardly and wiped his damp palms on his trousers, his heart thumping in his chest.

After each of his turns, Louis came to stand between Harry’s legs, his back against Harry’s chest. Louis was warm, Harry thought, and it felt nice having him there. Louis smelled good and he would slide his hand down Harry’s thigh, squeezing at his knee before he’d move away, leaving Harry clutching his knee after Louis had left. 

Louis won that game of pool and Niall grumbled as he went to get more drinks and shots for everyone. Harry wasn’t sure how much more he should drink since his head was already foggy but Louis had told Niall to get him another sex on the beach and Harry couldn’t disagree. 

Liam set the shots on fire and Louis passed one to Harry. He threw his head back, downing the shot before Harry had even brought his to his lips. Liquid dribbled out of the corner of Louis’ mouth and Harry watched as it made its way down Louis’ neck, disappearing underneath his shirt. He wanted nothing more than to follow the wet path with his tongue, to taste the alcohol on Louis’ skin. 

“Alright, Lou,” Niall said, his voice cutting through Harry’s thoughts. “Last one. Let’s put fifty quid on it.”

“Alight,” Louis agreed easily. “Fifty quid says I beat your pale white arse.”

Harry bit back a whine as he watched Louis set up the next game.

“Mate,” Liam said a few minutes later as he approached Harry’s side. “You’re being a bit obvious.”

Harry blinked slowly at Liam, his brain trying to process what he was saying. “He’s so pretty,” he replied. “I love him so much, Li.”

Liam sighed. “I know, Harry, I know,” he said. He slung his arm around Harry’s shoulder and Harry buried his face into the crook of Liam’s neck, wondering when Liam started to smell so good. He inhaled deeply and patted Liam’s chest, feeling the hard muscle underneath it. “Whoa, Harry, that’s a bit too close for comfort.” Harry whined. He wanted to feel Liam’s abs. He tugged at Liam’s shirt but Zayn’s hand came out of nowhere and pushed Harry’s hand away.

“God, you’re pissed, Harry,” Zayn said. 

Harry grinned at him and picked up his drink, taking a long sip. “I feel _great_ ,” he said, his words slurring a little. “These are so tasty! You should try it, Zayn.” He held the drink out for Zayn to take a sip from but Zayn set it down on the bench behind Harry. 

“I think you should pace yourself,” Zayn said. 

“No,” Harry whined, reaching for the glass. He missed and the glass ended up falling to the floor with a loud crash. Harry looked down at it sadly, his bottom lip sticking out in a pout. “Zayn, that wasn’t very nice.”

“I’ll get you another one,” Zayn said and Harry smiled at him. “After this mess has been cleaned up.”

“I’ll do it!” Harry said, sliding off his bar stool. He stumbled for a moment but made his way over to the lady behind the bar who was serving drinks. “I made a mess,” he said in lieu of a greeting. “I think your glass jumped out of my hand and broke.”

“I’ll get it, sweetheart,” she said, giving him a smile. Harry beamed at her. She was nice, he thought. “Here, have a bottle of water, first.”

Harry gratefully accepted the water and cracked the lid open. He drank the entire thing while leaning against the bar still and then had the sudden urge to go to the toilet. He shuffled his way through the small crowd of people and went about his business, feeling a lot better for it. 

Once he made his way back over to his friends, he felt a little less light headed but still just as warm. He felt a pang of anger and wondered where it came from. He glanced around and saw a couple of guys at one of the pool tables, one with a deep frown on his face. He stared for a moment to long and the guy glared at him when he caught Harry’s gaze. The anger flared up again and Harry shook his head, trying to shake it off. 

“You alright, Harry?” Louis asked, concern lacing his voice. He put a hand on Harry’s forearm and Harry turned his attention back to his friends. 

“Let’s dance, Lou,” he replied, taking Louis’ hand in his own to lead him to the small dance floor that was on the other side of the pool tables. 

He pulled Louis close, his hands falling to Louis’ waist. They danced closely together, in each other’s personal space the entire time. Louis’ hands were warm where they sat on Harry’s shoulders. He squeezed Louis’ hips gently and pulled him even closer so their chests were flush against each other.

Zayn, Liam and Niall all joined them a few moments later, breaking Harry and Louis apart, much to Harry’s annoyance. He danced with his friends, his limbs flailing around. A handful more people joined them on the dance floor and Harry twirled around, feeling the anger from that guy ebbing away. Everyone around him felt happy; projected happy, drunk feelings and it made Harry’s entire being feel lighter. He couldn’t stop smiling, even as Niall pulled him into some kind of waltz, even though the music wasn’t even close to a waltz. He stumbled around and laughed loudly.

The Macarena came on a few songs later and Harry cheered loudly. He somehow became the leader for the Macarena dance, his hips swaying sloppily with each movement. He danced with everyone that came close. Several women complimented his dancing or his hair or his cute smile and Harry just grinned at each of them in response, thanking them for their kind words. 

After a few more songs, Harry felt hands on his hips from behind. He didn’t have to turn around to know that it was Louis. He placed his hands on top of Louis’ own and moved to the rhythm Louis had set. He closed his eyes and got lost in the music, in the feeling of Louis’ body behind his own. 

“Turn around,” Louis whispered in Harry’s ear, his breath hot against the skin. Harry shivered and turned in Louis’ arms. He smiled down at Louis and wrapped his arms around Louis’ middle. He pulled Louis close until they were flush against each other once more. They stumbled as they got their footing and settled for swaying together, even though the music was upbeat and fast.

“Hi,” Harry said softly. 

“Hi,” Louis returned. His breath smelled sweet like the cosmopolitan drinks they’d had earlier. “Nice dance moves.”

“Thanks,” Harry said. “My mum taught me.”

Louis snorted and shook his head. “Somehow, I don’t think your mum taught you half of the stuff you were pulling out there.”

Harry shrugged and his hair fell into his eyes. Louis reached up and pushed it aside for him. Harry licked his lips before his gaze dropped to Louis’ own. “Lou,” he started. “God.”

Louis’ hand cupped the back of Harry’s head, his fingers twining in Harry’s hair, tugging ever so slightly. His breath puffed against Harry’s lips as their foreheads pressed together. Harry licked his lips again and waited for the inevitable brush of Louis’ lips against his own. 

It never happened though, as Harry was bumped into sharply from behind, a grunted, but clear ‘fucking poofters’ said in the person’s wake. 

Harry frowned as his gaze moved from Louis to the guy that had been staring at Harry before while he was playing pool. The guy had a glare on his face and was staring at Harry hard, a pool cue in his hand. He couldn’t have been older than twenty, Harry thought, but his age didn’t matter in terms of his bad attitude. 

“What was that?” Harry asked before he could stop himself.

“You heard me,” the guy said. “No one wants to see your shirt lifting ways in here, mate.”

Harry’s frown deepened as did the stranger’s. 

“Harry,” Louis said from behind him, his hand on Harry’s arm. “Just leave it.”

“Listen to your fairy boyfriend there, why don’t you just go?”

Harry felt the anger rolling off the guy in waves. “Why don’t you leave? We weren’t hurting anyone.”

“You’re hurting my eyes,” the guy retorted, getting closer to them. He was a lot taller than Harry was, and had a lot more muscle but Harry wasn’t scared. Whether it was a false sense of bravery from the alcohol in his system or a mix of everyone’s emotions seeping into him through his empathic ability, Harry wasn’t sure, but he knew that he didn’t want this guy to get away with talking to them, talking about _Louis_ , like that.

“Harry,” Louis said urgently from next to him. His hand slipped into Harry’s own and he squeezed Harry’s hand to get his attention.

“Maybe you should cut your eyes out then,” Harry said to the guy. “Then you wouldn’t have to look at my shirt lifting self.”

The guy’s fist hit Harry’s face before he could even register what had happened. His head snapped back from the force and he could feel his powers automatically kicking in to absorb the blow. He rubbed at his chin and looked up at the guy. He shook off Louis’ hand and stepped forwards to punch the guy back when all of a sudden, Niall was between them, shoving the guy away forcefully. 

The guy’s friend joined him a moment later, also holding a pool cue and an equally angry look on his face. 

“Back off, mate,” Niall said. 

Both guys looked like they were trying to move forwards but Harry could see Niall’s fingers twitching from his side. He smirked to himself as the little metal marble Niall always kept on him floated out of his pocket and hovered near his hand. 

“Your friends started it,” the first guy spat. “You should just leave before we do some serious damage.”

Niall laughed and the first guy tried to surge forwards again but wasn’t able to. “That’s not gonna happen,” he said. 

Liam and Zayn approached them just as Niall’s metal marble floated into his line of sight. He could see the heat radiating from Liam’s palms like he was readying himself for a fight. Harry tore his gaze away and focused on Niall again. The marble flattened out and formed into a switchblade right before their eyes.

“You see,” Niall said nonchalantly. “My friends here did nothing wrong.” The metal gleamed in the dull lighting of the pub, but its shape was obvious and sharp. “They’re just two lads, having a good time.” The switchblade suddenly morphed into a very scary looking knife and Harry swallowed thickly. “They were just dancing and weren’t disturbing anyone, you see,” Niall continued like he wasn’t controlling the piece of metal that was floating in mid-air in front of him. The knife changed into several smaller pieces and each piece assembled together as Niall spoke. “But you two are _clearly_ having a bad night. Now, I’m not sure if it’s your pathetic homophobia that’s put you in such a bad mood or if, in fact, you’re having a lover’s tiff yourself, but that’s stopping right here. You see, I’m fucking Irish and the rumours about us being nasty pieces of work to fight are very, _very_ true.”

Harry watched with wide eyes as the metal pieces started to take shape. Niall was creating a gun right in front of them. Harry could feel the panic coming from the two guys, despite the looks of anger on both of their faces still. There was a single piece of metal floating next to the now fully formed gun. It slowly turned into a bullet and Niall used his powers to load the gun and flick the safety off. He cocked it and grinned at the two guys.

“Now,” he said, his tone even. “What do you say to apologising to my friends or losing a kneecap each? Your choice.”

“Fuck you,” the first guy spat, trying to move again.

“Wrong answer,” Niall said. 

Before Harry could blink, Louis was in front of Niall, snatching the gun out of the air where it had floated down to the first guy’s kneecap and was pressed against the denim of his jeans. Harry felt the panic rising from the second guy and but the first guy had a mixture of hatred and fear coming off him still.

“Niall, guns don’t–”

Louis was cut off as the first guy threw a bar stool at his head. Harry watched as Louis powers activated and blasted the stool to pieces before it could connect with his head. He rounded on the two guys and held a palm out in each of their directions, cocooning them in a force field each. He suspended them in mid-air and shook his head before he threw them both across the room. The landed with an almighty crash as Louis’ force fields disappeared a moment before they hit the wall.

“Get the fuck out of my pub.”

The female bartender from before had a large kitchen knife pointing at them but Niall snatched it easily out of the air with his powers. He waved a hand and crushed the metal with his powers until it was a metal coaster. He placed it on the bar and blew the woman a kiss before leaving.

Harry felt Louis tugging on his hand and his feet automatically moved, following Louis from the bar. 

“That was sick!” Niall cheered as they all left the bar. 

Harry could feel the anxiety radiating off every person in the bar until they were more than fifty yards away. Louis’ hand was still holding his, which Harry was grateful for because he wasn’t sure if he could focus on walking by himself right then. 

Guilt flooded Harry as they walked. Niall was talking rapidly about wanting to go back into the bar and taunting the guy some more but Liam cut him off and sharply reprimanded him for being so reckless with his powers. 

“Harry, are you alright?” Louis asked from next to Harry.

Harry nodded then shook his head. “I’m a bit overwhelmed,” he said, stopping in the middle of the footpath. He took a few deep breaths, his head swimming. 

“It’s okay, Harry, I’m here, it’s okay,” Louis said. He cupped Harry’s face in his hands. “Just breathe with me, okay? Just like we’ve done before. Focus on my voice and just breathe.”

Harry nodded dumbly, focusing on Louis’ even breathing. He put his hand flat on Louis’ chest to feel the steady rising and falling of it. He swallowed thickly as his own breathing slowly got under control. The emotions of everyone else slowly ebbed away, leaving him feeling drained and tired.

“Do you think you can make it back to the car?” Liam’s worried voice asked from next to him. 

Harry looked up to see Liam and Zayn standing next to each other, wearing matching looks of concern and he nodded. “I think so,” he replied, curling his fingers into Louis’ shirt ever so slightly. Louis hand curled over the top of his own and he looked at Harry with the same worried expression Liam was. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

“Niall’s already gone,” Liam said. “He wanted to run to the car. It’ll probably do him good to expel some of that pent up energy he obviously has.”

“I’ll walk slowly with you,” Louis said. He brought Harry’s hand up to his cheek and kissed the palm of it before tangling his fingers with Harry’s own, letting it drop between them. 

“Thanks,” Harry said. 

The walk back to the car was mostly silent. Zayn and Liam walked ahead of them and were talking quietly between themselves but Harry was too exhausted to talk. He could still feel prickles of other people’s emotions in his mind and he focused solely on his breathing as he walked hand in hand with Louis. Louis walked at Harry’s pace as he said he would, stopping every now and then so Harry could try and find his centre so he could block out everyone’s emotions. 

“I think there’s some water in the car,” Louis said after a few minutes. “If not, we’ll stop and get some. It’ll help with your headache.”

Harry nodded. “I can still feel everything everyone was projecting in there,” he said. “Except you, of course.”

“Except me,” Louis echoed. 

“It kind of took me back to the motorway accident,” Harry admitted. “There were too many people, too many feelings.”

“I don’t think the drinking really helped,” Louis said. “The last time you got drunk you were just with the lads and me. And you were under the protection of my force field. No stray emotions would’ve been able to get to you that weren’t happy ones from the others.”

Harry stopped again. “…Yeah, you’re right,” he said, thinking back to the night Louis was referring to. “You’re right,” he repeated. 

Louis gave him a small smile. “C’mon, keep walking; it isn’t that much farther to the car.”

“Okay,” Harry said. They fell into step again and within short while, they reached the car where Niall was already leaning against it.

Harry could feel the pent up energy coming off Niall from a few yards away and he stopped in his tracks. “I don’t know if I can share a car with him like that,” he whispered to Louis.

“Do you trust me?” Louis asked softly.

“Always,” Harry replied. 

“Close your eyes,” Louis instructed. Harry closed his eyes and Louis’ hand left his. There was a pressure on his temples and a cold chill suddenly overcame him, feeling like water running down his back for a brief moment before it disappeared completely. “You can open them now.”

Harry blinked his eyes opened. “What was that?” he asked.

“Shield,” Louis replied simply. “As long as I’m awake for the duration of the drive, you’ll be shielded from everyone’s emotions. It’s just a temporary fix but I figured it’d help.”

Harry threw his arms around Louis in a tight hug. “ _Thank you_ ,” he whispered, cuddling Louis close to him.

Louis ran his hand down Harry’s back before holding him loosely. “Anytime,” he said sincerely.

They made their way over to the others who were waiting for them next to the car.

“I’ll drive,” Liam said. “I’m not drunk at all, so I can drive.”

“How are you not drunk?” Louis asked. “You had just as much to drink as we did. Not as much as Niall, of course.”

“My powers burn it out of me before it can reach my blood stream,” Liam replied. “I can’t ever get drunk.”

“Oh,” Louis said. “Cool.”

Liam smiled and unlocked the car.

“Shotgun!” Niall called far too loudly and far too happily for how late it was. “I’m riding shotgun!”

“Yes, just get in the car, Niall,” Liam said, his tone hard.

Harry clambered into the backseat with Zayn and Louis on either side of him. He put his seatbelt on and tipped his head back to lean on the headrest. He took a few deep breaths and revelled in the fact that he couldn’t feel _any_ of the boys’ emotions. It was different, he thought. He wasn’t used to not getting something from any of them at any given time but it was peaceful, he thought.

“Here, have a drink,” Louis said as he passed Harry a water bottle that was tucked into the pocket behind the driver’s seat.

Harry uncapped the bottle and took a few long sips. The water made his mind feel less foggy the moment it entered his system. He passed the bottle back to Louis who also took a drink before putting it back into pocket. 

“You alright, Harry?” Zayn asked, his voice laced with concern.

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he replied. “Louis’ got a shield around me. I can’t feel anything from any of you.”

Zayn tipped his head forwards to look at Louis who just shrugged. Louis slipped his hand into Harry’s own and Harry smiled at the familiar action. Zayn carded his fingers through Harry’s hair and rubbed at his scalp. Harry dropped his head onto Zayn’s shoulder and relaxed underneath his touch, his eyes drooping closed. 

They arrived back at the mansion quicker than Harry expected. Liam parked the car in the garage and they all got out. 

“I’m going to take him straight up to bed,” Louis said as Liam locked the car. 

Liam nodded. “Take it easy,” he said. 

“We will,” Louis replied. He put his hand on Harry’s back and guided him to the lifts, leaving Zayn, Niall and Liam alone in the garage for a few moments. 

“Hey, Lou,” Harry said as they stepped into the empty lift. Louis pushed the button for their floor and they travelled upwards a moment later.

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for taking care of me,” Harry continued. 

Louis smiled at him and pushed Harry’s hair out of his face. “Anytime,” he said. “You know that.”

“I do,” Harry agreed. 

They entered their bedroom and Harry immediately took his clothes off, leaving them in a pile on his bed. He changed his underwear and crossed the room to Louis’ bed and immediately climbed in. He pulled the blankets up to his chin and watched Louis’ naked back as he got changed. Louis climbed into bed a moment later after he had flicked off the light. He curled behind Harry and laced their fingers together on Harry’s naked chest.

“How are you feeling now?” Louis asked after a few minutes of silence.

“Tired mostly,” Harry replied. “The shield helped though, thank you.” He felt Louis drop a kiss into his hairline and he smiled sleepily, even though Louis probably couldn’t see his face properly from the angle they were at. He rolled over, effectively pushing Louis onto his back and he tucked his head under Louis’ chin. “That’s better,” he mumbled, stroking his fingers across Louis’ bare chest. 

Louis quickly caught Harry’s hand in his own and he gently kissed each of Harry’s fingers before setting their joined hands on his chest. Harry wanted to ask what that meant to Louis. He wanted to know if the action meant as much to Louis as it did to him. He wanted to kiss Louis like he had been going to in the pub before everything else happened. He wanted so much but was too scared to ask for it. 

“Sleep,” Louis commanded softly.

“Okay,” Harry agreed. He closed his eyes, letting the steady beat of Louis’ heart lull him into a deep sleep.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine  
 _Louis_  


Harry had almost kissed him.

Louis was one hundred percent sure that Harry had been going to kiss him on Saturday night. He couldn’t stop thinking about it. He desperately wanted it to happen but since the incident at the pub, there hadn’t been a good time. Louis had slept through most of Sunday, having been worn out and hung over from the night before, and their classes on Monday morning had required Louis’ full attention.

As he changed into his X-Men suit on Monday afternoon, Louis’ mind wandered back to the way Harry had held him on Saturday night. His fingers had dug into Louis’ hips with just the right amount of pressure that made Louis’ legs turn to jelly. Harry’s breath had been hot on his cheek and sickly sweet from the drinks he’d had. They were both drunk but the air had been thick and heavy around them, urging them closer and closer until there wasn’t any space between them at all.

Louis _wanted_ Harry to kiss him, though. He wanted to go back to that moment before the drunken jerk had ruined it and he wanted Harry to kiss him until his lips were sore. If he concentrated enough, he could still feel Harry’s breath puffing across his lips. Louis wasn’t meant to have good things, apparently, he thought grumpily. 

He sighed and zipped himself up before joining the others in the training room. Nick had changed their simulation day to the Monday because he was going to be away from the school on Friday. Louis didn’t mind, it gave him something else to focus on rather than thinking about Harry and his lips.

“Alright!” Nick said far too cheerfully for Louis’ liking. He pushed some buttons on the touchpad by the door and turned his attention to them. “Today your robot is a little _different_ than usual. Which means you, Niall, won’t be able to just use your powers to crush it. Each of your powers will be tested to the extremes today as your robot is going to show no mercy. He is going to be impervious to a lot of your powers, so you need to work _together_ and harder than you ever have before if you have any hopes in passing the lesson. Okay? Good, let’s go!”

Before anyone else could speak, Nick pushed the green ‘go’ button on the touchpad and left the room, locking the door behind him.

Louis fiddled with his communication ear piece until he could hear the others properly. “Alright,” he said. “Let’s see what we’re dealing with then.”

The simulation started and the room shifted beneath their feet, the scenery changing to what looked like a construction site of some kind. There was some scaffolding leaning against a half-finished brick wall to one side and an overturned car right in front of it. At least Niall would be able to use that, Louis thought. 

There was a large explosion and suddenly they were all covered with water from a burst water main off to Louis’ right. He spluttered and wiped the water out of his eyes with the back of his hand. The others weren’t fairing any better, Louis noticed, Harry, in particular, looked a little like a drowned rat, his curls sticking to his forehead.

“There we go,” Niall said.

Louis looked up and there, in the distance, loomed a gigantic robot. It was bigger than all of the others combined, he thought. It was easily twenty feet tall and ten feet wide. Its robotic limbs were huge and heavy with the way it walked. Louis had no doubt that one punch from that thing would render them unconscious. 

“Looks like fibreglass,” Liam pointed out, his voice in Louis’ ear through the comm. 

“I got this, lads,” Niall said. “Maybe we can get this done and have an early one. Li, when you’re ready.” He twirled his metal pole in one hand and directed it to the overturned car, using it to launch the car into the air, straight at the robot. Liam shot a blast of fire at the car and it burst into flame just as it made contact with the robot.

The robot stumbled backwards but quickly regained its footing. Its head turned towards Niall and a large hand swung down, colliding with Niall. Louis reacted quickly, throwing a force field around Niall before he could crash into the ground.

“Well,” Louis said a moment later. “Nick did say this wasn’t going to be easy.”

“We need a plan,” Liam said. “And quick.”

“Yeah, I’m not waiting for this,” Niall ground out. He launched the scaffolding at the robot but it barely made it flinch this time. Niall slipped in the mud from the water and fell backwards and the robot descended on him. Louis quickly jumped between them and threw a heavy force field at the robot to make it step back. He tweaked each one so they were dense and heavy, designed to knock the robot off its feet. It stumbled again but jumped out of the way of the next one Louis threw at it. 

Louis watched with wide eyes as the robot soared above their heads.

“That’s new,” Zayn’s voice said in his ear. “We’ve never had one that could fly before.”

“Shit,” Louis mumbled. The robot came crashing back down and the entire ground shook. The floor cracked and shifted rapidly beneath their feet. Louis hastily jumped out of the way, behind the robot where the ground was still whole. 

“Guys, we need a plan,” Liam urged, shooting a fireball off at the robot to slow it down from where it was advancing on them once again. 

“I say we just give it everything we have until it caves,” Niall said. 

Louis could see him on the other side of the robot, his metal pole in hand. Louis couldn’t help but think that it was a bad idea. “I don’t think that’s going to work, Niall,” he replied. “We need a strategy that will work. This thing is _huge_ and powerful.”

Louis looked up to see the robot’s arm detach itself and shoot straight at Niall from where he was. Niall quickly sped out of the way but the arm followed Niall around the room, gaining on him every moment. 

“Niall, duck!” Louis yelled. He threw a force field around the flying arm and used his powers to deter it from the path it was taking. He smashed it hard against the ground, lowering the force field at the last second so it got the full impact on it. It shattered everywhere and Louis breathed a sigh of relief. Niall sped off in the other direction, out of harm’s way.

“Babe, do you think you can fly over it and create a storm or something?” Liam asked, his voice urgent in Louis’ comm. 

“Yeah, I think so,” Zayn said.

A cloud formed above the robot’s head as Zayn flew overhead, his arms stretched out. He hovered in mid-air and fired lightning bolts at the robot. It didn’t seem to work though, Louis noticed, even when Harry took a running jump from out of nowhere, launching himself at the robot to try and knock it down.

Louis whipped his hand out and a force field caught Harry just before he crashed to the ground. He took a deep breath and focused on what everyone was doing. “Li,” he said. “I don’t think Zayn’s powers are going to cut it.”

“I’ll have to agree,” Liam replied, his breathing a little haggard in Louis’ comm piece. 

“Alright,” Louis said. “Light it up.” He caught Liam’s gaze and they both nodded at each other. 

Fire shot from Liam’s hands in a constant stream as he ran around the base of the robot. Louis held his hands out and blasted a force field from them, containing the fire from where it started at the ground up where Liam was. Liam stepped closer to Louis and with a final burst of energy, he hurtled a large fireball straight at the robot’s chest. Louis quickly used his powers to encompass the entire area. The robot struggled against the force field but it was too strong. 

“I think we did it,” Louis said proudly. “Harry, when I drop the force field, I want you to absorb the power and punch that thing straight through the chest, okay?”

“Okay, Lou,” Harry agreed. His voice sounded warm and comforting in Louis’ ear and he smiled to himself. They could do this. “On three… One… Two… Three.”

Louis dropped the force field but the robot charged out of it a moment later and backhanded Louis and Liam in one swoop. Louis grunted and quickly grabbed Liam’s hand, protecting them with a force field as they landed on the ground. Louis groaned and lay there for a moment. He looked over at Liam who went wide eyed and then quickly shoved him out of the way.

The robot’s other arm shot straight at them and grabbed Liam around the middle, lifting him up into the air until the arm reattached itself to the robot. 

“Fuck this,” Zayn said. 

“Zayn, no!” Louis yelled when he saw Zayn raise his hands, lightning crackling at his fingertips. “You’ll kill Liam if you do that.”

“Then get him out, Lou,” Zayn snapped. “Because I’m going to fry this fucker.”

Louis looked around and saw the shell of the car from earlier. “Niall,” he said. “Throw that car at him again and keep doing it until he lets go of Liam.”

“On it,” Niall said, wielding his metal rod to pick the car up. 

“Harry, catch Liam when he falls,” Louis instructed. “Zayn, get ready to electrocute it. I’ll keep shields around everyone so none of you get hurt.”

The car struck the robot in the chest and Liam cried out in pain. Louis could see Liam’s flame covered hands trying to melt the robot’s hand where it had a tight grip on him. Harry edged closer to the robot and Louis concentrated on making the shields around all of them as strong as possible so they didn’t get hurt, using the skills Nick had taught him to keep the shield as close to their skin as possible.

The robot finally let go of Liam after a combination of his flaming hands and Niall constantly smashing the car against it until the car shattered completely. Harry caught Liam easily and the moment Liam was on solid ground, Zayn struck the robot with more lightning than Louis had ever seen in his life. The area lit up brilliantly at each strike and the robot’s body started singing. 

“Rip it’s head off, Lou,” Zayn said as he landed on the ground, panting heavily.

Louis nodded and ran up the air until he landed on the robot’s shoulders. He dug his knees in tightly and created a force field around its head. He heard the tell-tale cracking of whatever material the robot was made out of and he dug his fingers in, pulling upwards. He finally ripped the head off and jumped down a moment later, dropping the head onto the ground next to him.

“We did it,” Louis panted. He bent over and rested the palms of his hands on his thighs, breathing heavily.

“Hold on…” Liam said warily. 

“What?” Louis asked. He looked up to see the robot advancing on them. It couldn’t see, causing it to stumble a bit but it advanced on them rather quickly.

“The core,” Harry muttered.

“What?” Louis asked.

“The core is inside the robot’s chest,” Harry explained. “Not the head. Nick knew we’d go for the head, so he changed the core.”

“So what does that mean?” Louis asked hastily, throwing his hands up to produce a large force field to hold off the robot for a few moments while Harry spoke.

“Liam,” Harry said. “Shoot your fireballs at me.”

“…Harry, that’s not a good idea,” Liam said.

“Just do it,” Harry snapped. “I’m the only one who can get in there and break it with my strength. Louis can keep me protected with a force field, right?”

Louis nodded. “Of course,” he replied, straining under the weight of holding the robot off. 

“Zayn, you too, hit me with lightning,” Harry demanded.

Louis winced as he saw Harry’s body convulse with the force of Liam’s firepower and Zayn’s lightning bolts.

“Niall!” Louis called. “Shackle the robot’s feet to the ground!”

“It won’t hold!” Niall called back, already wielding his powers. 

“It just needs to hold long enough for Harry to get inside the robot,” Louis replied. 

“Alright,” Niall said, manipulating the leftover metal from the car and his own metal rod to form large metal shackles that surrounded the robot’s feet and dug into the ground.

“Zayn, use your powers, lift Harry up,” Louis instructed. “I’ll keep him protected as much as I can. Liam, get ready to melt whatever you can once Harry’s free, alright?”

“Yes,” Liam and Zayn said in unison through Louis’ comm piece. 

“Harry,” he said and Harry glanced over, his skin glowing a faint red colour from all of the power he had absorbed. “Good luck.”

Harry nodded and a moment later, Zayn lifted Harry into the air with his control over the air. The wind whipped around them, the chill biting into Louis’ face. Louis concentrated hard on Harry and the second Harry disappeared inside the robot through the opening where its head used to be, Louis dropped his arms to his side, concentrating on shielding Harry even though he couldn’t see him. 

Louis bit his lip as he watched the robot stumble around. Harry was taking too long for his liking and the robot was getting more vicious in its attempts to get Harry out of its insides. Louis could feel the panic rising in his chest.

“Harry!” he yelled but the comm went dead, crackling in Louis’ ear. He ripped it out and threw it to the ground, stepping closer to the robot. He was going to get Harry out if it was the last thing he did. 

A moment later, the sound of something shattering snapped Louis’ attention upwards. The robot’s chest pushed outwards, emitting a red glow with every inch it moved. Louis held his breath as he waited, ready to jump into action if he needed to. The entire chest plate felt to the ground and Harry emerged a split second later, holding a large chunk of wires in his hand. He panted heavily and jumped down from where he was still inside of the robot. 

Relief flooded through Louis and he all but ran over to Harry, right into his personal space. Without even thinking, he grabbed the back of Harry’s head and pulled him forwards, pressing his lips to Harry’s own. Barely a moment later, Harry kissed him back insistently. Louis’ fist curled into Harry’s hair, keeping them close as loud cheers and shouts erupted from behind them, reminding Louis that they weren’t alone. 

“Lou… _what_?” Harry muttered, pressing their foreheads together. His big green eyes bore into Louis’ own, full of questions that Louis wasn’t sure he could answer. 

“I thought… I thought…” Louis trailed off and kissed Harry again, slower this time but with the same amount of passion. Harry’s mouth opened up under his own and Louis nipped at Harry’s bottom lip twice before sliding his tongue against Harry’s. They kissed for a few long moments before Niall coughed pointedly from behind them. They pulled back and Louis licked his lips. “Alright, alright,” he muttered.

“Why don’t _I_ get a response like that?” Liam commented

Louis raised an eyebrow at him and looked pointedly at Zayn who flushed and wrapped his arm around Liam’s middle, pulling him close.

“Harry, that was sick,” Niall said with a grin. “The way you punched your way out of its chest. God, that was great.”

Harry smiled sheepishly and Louis reached for Harry’s hand, squeezing it gently. “Thanks,” he said.

The door opened a moment later and Nick appeared. “I thought you weren’t going to get it for a while there,” he said as he strode into the room. “But when Harry guessed that the core had been moved, I knew you had it. Great work, boys.”

“Thanks, Nick,” the five of them replied in unison.

“Louis, good job with the force fields today,” Nick said. “Keep practicing, though, I know you can do better.” Louis nodded and Nick turned to Zayn. “Great job with the flying. For you and Harry both. I knew you had it in you. Alright, good job, boys. Class dismissed.”

The simulation faded away as Nick left them alone in the training room and Louis felt his body relax. Harry’s hand was still tightly in his own and he glanced over his shoulder at him. Nerves started to crawl up into his stomach like a million ants spurting out of their nest. He bit his lip and moved to loosen his hold on Harry’s hand but Harry just held it tighter, a determined look on his face.

“I’m so exhausted,” Liam said, breaking into Louis’ thoughts. He turned his attention to Liam and nodded. 

“Me too,” he agreed. “That took a lot out of all of us.”

“I don’t know about you but I need to shower,” Zayn said. “Then I just want to sleep for the rest of the day.”

“There’s a reason why I prefer these on a Friday,” Liam said. He flicked his gaze to Louis and Harry then down to their joined hands. “We’ll leave you two alone.”

Niall shot them a suggestive wink and Louis felt his cheeks heat up. He had no idea why Niall was winking at them, it wasn’t like they were going to start shagging on the ground or anything. 

“C’mon, we should shower too,” Louis said softly, as if speaking louder would somehow break the delicate feeling between them. Harry nodded and followed Louis from the room, not letting go of his hand. 

The shower gave Louis time to piece things together in his head. The kiss wasn’t problematic, not for him, at least. He needed to find out how Harry felt though, before getting his hopes up. Saturday when Harry had been going to kiss Louis could have just been a drunken move on his behalf and Louis didn’t want to pressure him into anything. 

He scrubbed at his scalp, rubbing shampoo in it, getting rid of the dirty, sweaty feeling he always had after their simulation training exercises. He closed his eyes and tipped his head under the water and tried not to think too much about how Harry’s lips had slotted perfectly against his own. 

Louis finished up and by the time he got back to their bedroom, Harry was already there, sitting on his own bed, his laptop resting on his thighs. Louis sorted through his belongings before he padded across the room, standing next to Harry’s bed. Harry looked up at him with his big, wide eyes and Louis felt his chest constrict at the sight. “Hi,” he said slowly.

“You kissed me,” Harry blurted out.

Louis winced and took a step backwards. This clearly wasn’t going to go the way he thought it would. “Yeah, I…” he swallowed thickly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t… Shit.”

Harry wordlessly set his laptop onto the floor on the other side of his bed and shuffled over. “Sit.”

Louis automatically moved forwards and joined Harry on the bed, keeping as much space between them as he could for a fast get away if he needed it. 

“Why?”

Louis blinked. “Why what?”

“Why’d you kiss me?”

He scrunched his eyes closed and exhaled slowly.

“And why aren’t you doing it again?”

Louis’ eyes snapped open and he gave Harry a bewildered look. “What?”

“I’ve wanted to kiss you from the first second I saw you, Lou,” Harry mumbled.

“Oh,” Louis replied dumbly. “Well.” He coughed awkwardly and licked his lips.

Harry blinked at him expectantly and Louis shuffled over, closing the gap between them. His gaze flicked down to Harry’s plump, pink lips before he leaned forwards. Harry let out the most beautiful sound when Louis’ lips touched his own. His hand found its way into Harry’s hair, fingers pressing against Harry’s scalp ever so slightly. 

The kiss was slow and unsure, just like they were. Harry’s lips fit perfectly against Louis’ own, he thought. He ran his tongue along Harry’s bottom lip and Harry opened his mouth in response, his movements a little hesitant, unlike they had been in the training room where they had both been running on adrenaline. 

Harry’s grip tightened on Louis’ shoulder where his hand rested, causing Louis to pull back. “Is this okay?” Harry asked in a whisper, his breath hot against Louis’ lips. 

“Yes,” Louis replied with a nod. Harry leaned closer, kissing Louis with a little more confidence. His hand slipped from Louis’ shoulder and fell to rest on his hip. Louis lost himself in the kisses, in the feeling of Harry’s tongue massaging his own in soft, slow movements. Louis leaned into Harry a little more and they both shifted on the bed so they were lying next to each other on their sides, kissing all the while. It was unlike anything Louis had ever experienced before and he never wanted to stop. Harry was warm all around him. Their knees pressed together on the bed and Louis wondered just how often he and Harry always found some way or another to touch each other. 

Their kisses came to a natural end and Harry beamed at Louis. His lips were spit slick and slightly swollen and Louis couldn’t help himself. He ducked his head and kissed Harry once more, eliciting a happy noise from Harry. He smiled against Harry’s mouth and pulled back enough to kiss Harry on the nose, making Harry scrunch it adorably when he pulled back. 

Louis moved his hand out of Harry’s hair and gently ran his thumb over Harry’s lips. “I’ve wanted to kiss you since the first moment I saw you, too,” he whispered. Harry beamed at him, his entire face lighting up with a happy smile. 

“Wait,” Harry said. “We could have been doing this for _so_ much longer.” He pouted and Louis pressed another kiss to Harry’s lips to placate him.

“We can do this now,” Louis said between kisses. “A lot. We can do this a lot.”

Harry hummed happily and squeezed Louis’ hip where his hand rested. “Does this mean you’re my boyfriend now?” he asked after a few moments. 

“If you want, yeah,” Louis pulling back. 

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he said with a slow smile. “I want.”

A shrill ringing broke the silence between them and Harry reached behind him to snatch his phone off the bedside table. Louis shifted so they were sitting up a little better and Harry answered the call.

“Hi, Gem,” he said. 

Louis winced as he heard a high pitched noise coming from the other end of the phone. He frowned at Harry who scrunched his nose at the noise. 

“Gem, slow down, I can’t hear you,” Harry said. There was a long pause and Harry turned to Louis. “Niall texted her that we kissed.”

“That was fast,” Louis commented. “Tell Gemma I said hi.”

Harry nodded and turned his attention to the conversation he was having with his sister. Louis reached for Harry’s laptop and pulled up Facebook. He changed Harry’s relationship status and left an idiotically cute status proclaiming Harry’s love for Louis before he logged out of Harry’s account and pulled up his own. He quickly accepted the relationship status change and left a comment on Harry’s status. Harry laid his head on Louis’ shoulder and glanced at the screen as he chatted to his sister. He gasped and poked Louis in the side, making Louis laugh. The phone fell to the bed as Harry snapped the laptop lid shut and carefully set it on the floor. 

“You,” he started, leaning over Louis, “are such a cheeky thing.”

Louis grinned up at him. “What are you going to do about it?” 

Harry dipped his head and kissed Louis soundly on the lips. “This,” he replied. Louis reached up and tangled a hand in Harry’s hair, bringing him closer to kiss again. The fingers on Harry’s right hand trailed down Louis’ side and he thought Harry was going to hold his hips again but a moment later, Harry’s fingers dug into Louis’ side and started tickling him mercilessly.

Loud laughter spilled from Louis’ lips as Harry’s fingers worked over his ribs, getting him in all of the spots that Louis was the most ticklish. He squealed and tried to get away from Harry, his legs flailing on the bed but Harry sat back on them, pinning Louis down. His hair flopped in his face and his smile was infectious as he looked down at Louis. He stopped tickling him a moment later. Louis tried to get his breath back, his chest heaving with the effort.

“That’s what you get for writing _Louis Tomlinson is the light of my life, I have no idea how I have lasted this long without him in my world. And his kisses are the pinnacle of my acne ridden teenage days_. Seriously, Lou, who writes like that?” Harry asked, his hands dangerously close to Louis’ ribs again.

“You do, according to Facebook,” Louis replied. 

He squirmed the second Harry’s hands came into contact with his ribs again, laughter filling the room once more. 

“Stop, stop!” Louis begged between bouts of laughter. Harry stopped and sat back on Louis’ thighs again.

“You should change it,” Harry said.

“No, I don’t think I will,” Louis replied. Before Harry could tickle him again, Louis pulled Harry close by the front of his shirt and kissed him soundly. Harry reacted immediately, his lips slotting easily against Louis’ own. They settled on the bed a little better, Harry half lying on top of Louis when Harry’s phone went off again. Louis groaned. “That thing needs to be switched off.”

“I’ll do it,” Harry said, fishing around on the bed for the phone. “It’s a text from Gem.” Harry unlocked his phone and laughed sharply. 

“What?” Louis asked.

“I forgot that Gem was still on the phone before,” Harry started. “She said she didn’t want to hear us having weird, kinky sex where you laugh loudly.”

Louis scoffed. “She would be privileged to hear us having sex.” He snatched the phone from Harry, set to type out a reply to Gemma when he realised that Harry was completely unmoving. “Haz?” 

“You want to have sex with me?” Harry asked.

Louis licked his lips and nodded once. “I mean, not right _now_ , obviously,” he replied hastily. “But maybe one day? In the future… _Far_ in the future. Well, maybe not _that_ far, but far enough. Like, not next week, at least. Is it hot in here?”

Harry grinned down at him. “I’d like that,” he whispered before he kissed Louis soundly again, effectively shutting Louis up from anything else he might have thought to say.

~*~

Being in a relationship with Harry was exactly the same as being Harry’s best friend, Louis found. Except there were a _lot_ more kisses involved. Louis was glad for the change. Their friendship had stayed the same, getting into each other’s personal space more than what was considered necessary by some people but they had always been affectionate friends. All of them had.

They had an awkward moment deciding on an appropriate sleeping arrangement the first night after they decided they were a _thing_ , until Louis had rolled his eyes and pulled Harry into bed with him, stating that they had been sleeping in the same bed for too long to care about separating for the sake that they were in a relationship. Louis knew that both he and Harry would struggle sleeping without the other curled up next to them. They were used to sleeping tangled together, Harry’s feet tangling with his own and Louis’ breath puffing against Harry’s skin as he spooned him, or vice versa when Harry was the big spoon. 

Nothing and everything had changed all at once. 

Harry still leaned against Louis’ chest as they did homework, his big, curly hair precariously close to Louis’ mouth but instead of pushing the hair aside, Louis would drop frequent kisses onto the top of Harry’s head and Harry would turn his face upwards, lips puckered adorably until Louis kissed him properly. He still read to Harry most nights. They had passed The Hunger Games series and had started on the Harry Potter one from the start because Harry insisted that Louis read everything with the best voices and he wanted to experience that as well. Louis hadn’t minded in the slightest. 

The only thing that was really different was the fact that Harry wanted to take Louis out for a proper date. Louis was beyond nervous. He was so nervous that he kept turning invisible every few minutes, causing Zayn to laugh loudly at him from where he was lazing on Louis’ bed. 

“I don’t get why you’re nervous,” Zayn said. “You’ve been snogging him for a week and sharing a bed with him for even longer than that. It’s just Harry.”

Louis turned invisible again and used the opportunity to twist Zayn’s nipple through his t-shirt. “That’s _why_ I’m nervous,” he said. “It’s _Harry_. The same guy I’ve been in love with the moment he stumbled into the training room.”

“You turned invisible then, too,” Liam pointed out from where he was situated behind Zayn, his arms draped casually across Zayn’s chest. They made being a couple look so easy. “We had _no_ clue what was going on.”

“I still have no clue what’s going on,” Louis grumbled. He reached into his wardrobe for another shirt. “This one?” he asked, holding up a mid-blue button down shirt. 

“Yeah, that with the braces you had before will look nice,” Liam said with a nod. 

“Good,” Louis said, draping them over the back of the desk chair that he rarely used. “Now for trousers.” He rifled through his ever expanding collection of clothes and settled on a pair of bright red ones. They were slightly longer than the ones he had worn out the previous weekend – these ones would cover his ankles unlike the other ones. He pulled the coat hanger off the rack and held it up for Liam and Zayn to inspect. “These?”

“Maybe lay off the red, Lou,” Zayn said. 

“No, the red is good,” Liam countered. “It’s like your signature colour.”

Louis hummed. “You’re right, it is,” he said. “Sorry, Zayn, you’ve been outvoted.”

“I don’t really care either way,” Zayn replied with a shrug. He brought Liam’s hand up to his lips and kissed the backs of his knuckles before setting their joined hands back on his chest. Louis was jealous at how effortless everything came to them. He huffed and set the trousers down on top of the other clothes and crossed over to his bed. He draped himself over his friends and let out a low whine. “Get off, you oaf,” Zayn said, shoving at Louis but Louis didn’t move. 

“No,” Louis said. “Why did I agree to this date?” he wondered. “I can’t stay visible for longer than five minutes and I’m so nervous I want to throw up.”

“Get off if you’re going to be sick,” Zayn said, kicking at Louis’ legs. 

Louis rolled off them and hung upside down over the side of his bed. He could feel his hair shifting, tickling his scalp as it went with the pull of gravity. He put his hands over his face and groaned. “Why does he have to be so pretty? This would all be a lot easier if he wasn’t pretty.”

“That’s really shallow, Louis,” Liam said. Zayn kicked him again on Liam’s behalf.

“Ouch, you prick,” Louis grumbled, removing his hands from his face. He promptly turned invisible again. “I’m pretty sure I’d love Harry if he wasn’t pretty. His being pretty just makes everything harder. Like staying _visible_ on this date.”

“You’ll be fine, Lou,” Zayn said exasperatedly. “Get changed _while_ you’re still invisible. We don’t need to see your junk _again_. And then go have a good night with Harry. You deserve it.”

“ _Fine_ ,” Louis replied, getting up off the bed. He changed out of his clothes, watching amusedly as they turned visible the moment they weren’t in contact with his body. He quickly changed, pulling the red trousers on. His feet came back into view as he zipped up the trousers. He pulled the shirt on and buttoned it before putting the braces on. He clipped them into place and turned to his friends who were too busy kissing to pay attention to Louis. “Oi!” he exclaimed. “None of that on my bed, thank you!” They parted and Zayn mock glared at him. “Now, tell me how handsome I am.”

“Very handsome, Lou,” Zayn deadpanned. 

“You look great, Louis,” Liam added. “Harry’s going to love it.”

At the mention of Harry’s name, Louis promptly turned invisible again. He groaned and sat down on his bed with a huff. 

“We aren’t even going to be able to enjoy ourselves if I’m _invisible_ the whole night,” Louis said, feeling very frustrated. “Harry’s going to look odd having dinner and a conversation seemingly with thin air.”

“You need to relax,” Liam said. “The more anxious you get, the more your powers are going to play up.”

“He’s right,” Zayn added. “Take a few deep breaths and you’ll turn visible again.”

Louis closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He focused on keeping his body in its naturally visible state. The door to his bedroom opened, breaking Louis’ concentration. 

“Where’s Lou?” Harry asked as he stepped into their room.

Louis stood even though Harry couldn’t see him. “I’m here,” he said. Harry’s head turned to Louis’ general direction. 

“He’s nervous and keeps turning invisible,” Zayn explained. 

A snort came from behind Harry as Niall and Ashley stepped into the room. “That’s going to make for an interesting date,” Niall said as he and Ashley joined Zayn and Liam on Louis’ bed.

“Can everyone please stop climbing all over my bed?” Louis asked. “I want to sleep in there later.”

“With Harry, you mean,” Niall added cheekily.

Louis was thankful that he was invisible so no one saw that his cheeks went red at the heavy implication. “Not like that, you perv,” he said to save face. “But I’ll be sure to be loud like you lot if we ever do.”

More times than he could count, Louis had heard various moans coming from Niall’s room and more recently, Liam and Zayn’s room. He was a teenage boy as well but he wasn’t nearly as loud as they were and that was saying something because Louis’ default setting was loud. 

“It won’t be long,” Ashley said as she leaned back into Niall who gave her a high five.

Louis groaned. “Harry, we should go,” he said. “Zayn, gimme your keys.”

“Can’t if I can’t see you,” Zayn teased. Louis grumbled and walked over to Zayn. He shoved his hand in Zayn’s front pocket and pulled out the car keys he needed. 

“There,” Louis said smugly. He picked up his wallet from his desk and made sure he had enough money in it before crossing the room to where Harry was standing. “Ready?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Harry replied. 

“Good,” Louis said. He slipped his invisible hand into Harry’s own and smiled when Harry reflexively gave it a soft squeeze. He slowly turned visible under Harry’s loving gaze. They waved to their friends and quickly left before they could make any other obscene comments. 

They got to the garage and Louis wordlessly passed Harry the car keys. He had planned their entire night out and hadn’t let Louis know any of the details, much to Louis’ annoyance. He didn’t mind surprises but he didn’t want to be kept in the dark. He wanted to know all of the details in advance. Harry, it seemed, had taken great pleasure in keeping the whole ordeal a secret from Louis, planning things when he wasn’t in the room, or when Louis was training with Liam. He thought it was highly unfair, and had been quite vocal about it but Harry had silenced him with a kiss and Louis promptly forgot why he had been annoyed in the first place.

They didn’t drive very far, Louis noticed, and all too soon they were pulling up in an empty parking space on a semi-busy street. Louis got out and Harry locked the car behind them. He immediately took Louis’ hand in his own and shot him a happy smile as he led him towards the T.G.I. Friday’s restaurant. Louis grinned at Harry and leaned into him a little as they walked in and were seated at a table for two. It was very cosy, Louis thought, as Harry’s knees brushed against his own as they got comfortable. 

“This is my favourite place,” Harry said. “I’ve always wanted to bring you here for our first date.”

Louis slid his foot against Harry’s own underneath the table. “It’s great,” he said. “I love T.G.I. Friday’s.”

The atmosphere was bubbling with happiness and it made Louis feel giddy inside. He still couldn’t wrap his head around that he was actually on a proper date with Harry, in a proper restaurant with the promise of lots of kisses later on, if everything went well. Even if it didn’t go well, his mind supplied. He loved kissing Harry and Harry made sure to kiss Louis at every opportunity. It was a win-win situation as far as Louis was concerned. 

They got drinks first and Harry ordered a Shirley Temple for himself. Louis chose the same when Harry said how good it was – he couldn’t disagree with Harry when he looked at Louis with such an earnest gaze. 

“We should get the tapas,” Harry said, looking up at Louis from his menu a while later. 

Louis hummed his agreement. “And potato skins, too,” he replied. “I love those.”

“Yeah, me too,” Harry agreed. 

Once they had placed their order, Louis glanced over at Harry. It was different just being out alone with Harry without the other boys. Liam and Zayn had gone on their fair share of dates since they had got together and Niall was always off with Ashley somewhere so Harry and Louis were alone together often but they’d never been out like this. They had always gone out with the other boys, and Ashley when she was free. It was exciting and nerve wracking at the same time. Louis didn’t know if Harry expected anything in particular from their date from Louis. A part of him hoped that Harry was just as nervous. 

The change between them wasn’t overly big. They were still best friends, they still trained together, still ate together at the school, still poked fun at Zayn and Liam’s too obvious heart eyes at each other. It had been less than a week and the only real thing that changed was that they now kissed. 

“Whatcha thinkin’, Lou?” Harry wondered. His hand reached across the table for Louis’ and he laced their fingers together. 

“Mostly I’m trying not to turn invisible again,” Louis replied. 

Harry’s brow furrowed. “Do I make you that nervous?” he asked, voice timid.

“Yes and no,” Louis replied. Harry’s face fell. “No, no! Not like that. It’s just. This is my first date.”

Harry perked considerably at that. “Mine too,” he replied earnestly. 

Louis smiled and loosened their hands so he could trace over the backs of Harry’s fingers with the pad of his own index finger. “You make me nervous,” he started softly. “I’ve never… This is very new to me. Not the…” he paused and tried to school his thoughts into some semblance of order. He hated not being able to get out what he wanted to say, he liked being collected in the face of anything. “No one knows me as well as you do, Harry,” he started again. “And I really don’t want anyone else to. Does that make sense?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, it does,” he replied. “Me too, Lou.”

Louis breathed a sigh of relief. “Good,” he said. “Because I don’t share.”

Harry laughed and brought Louis’ hand up to his lips to kiss the back of it. “Me either.” His stomach fluttered pleasantly at that. 

After they had dinner, Harry slung his arm low around Louis’ waist as they left the restaurant. Louis used all of his concentration not to turn invisible just from the implication of the action. He leaned into Harry’s side as they walked, taking in the brisk night air biting at his cheeks. They walked to a cinema that was close by and Harry bought tickets for a movie but Louis wasn’t really paying that much attention to what he had chosen for them to see.

It was a typical first date, Louis thought, as they bought a bucket of popcorn to share and a drink each. Harry led him to the back row and they sat down somewhere in the middle. Harry set the popcorn on his lap and picked up a handful to munch as the previews started to play. Louis shifted and leaned into Harry a little, feeling the warmth from Harry seep through to him. 

Nerves fluttered in Louis’ stomach when a short while into the movie, Harry’s hand reached for his own. He had no idea why the action made him nervous – he and Harry had held hands plenty of times, even since becoming a couple. Louis figured it was the atmosphere of being their first date, the hidden pressures of everything going perfectly. He knew it was irrational to think like that, that he and Harry were already perfect, but it didn’t stop the nerves from fluttering in his stomach.

“Alright, Lou?” Harry asked quietly. He could probably feel how clammy with sweat Louis’ palm was. Louis prided himself on always being the one to keep a cool head in dire situations – situations that would make anyone else freak out or freeze up completely, so the fact that he was this nervous over a date made him mentally scold himself.

“Yeah,” he replied easily. It was an outright lie, of course, but Harry didn’t need to know that. He didn’t need to worry.

“Lou,” Harry said softly, turning his entire body towards Louis. He set the popcorn bucket down on the ground and wrapped Louis’ hand with both of his own larger ones. “It’s me, Lou, you can tell me anything.”

Louis looked up into Harry’s earnest gaze. He couldn’t keep a thing from this boy, even if he wanted to. “I’m still nervous,” he replied after a few moments. “It’s stupid, I know, I’ll get over it.”

“It’s not stupid,” Harry replied. “You make me nervous too.”

“I do?” 

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “But in a good way. It’s good nerves. It makes me want to impress you still, even though you know all there is to know about me.”

Louis felt a pang of guilt go through him. He knew everything there was to know about Harry, and yet Louis still kept secrets from Harry. He wasn’t sure when he would feel strong enough to share his secrets, if at all, but he hoped he would soon. The way Harry looked at him was like Louis had personally hung every single star in the sky. He never wanted that look to go away.

Louis leaned over and kissed Harry softly. He tasted like popcorn and chocolate and Louis couldn’t get enough. He tangled a hand in Harry’s hair and kissed him earnestly. Harry responded immediately, his mouth slotting against Louis’ own perfectly. Louis felt a cold chill go through him but he ignored it, pushing closer into Harry’s warmth. 

“Uh, Lou?” 

“Yeah?” Louis mumbled, keeping his eyes closed as he pressed smaller kisses to Harry’s lips.

“You’re invisible again.”

Louis pulled back completely and looked down at his hands. 

“It kind of looks like I’m snogging myself here,” Harry pointed out.

Louis huffed. “Maybe it’ll help if I turn you invisible too?” 

Harry grinned. “Okay,” he replied, cupping Louis’ cheek again. Louis concentrated and turned Harry invisible and frowned. 

“Wait,” he started. “This isn’t going to work. I can’t see you mph!” Louis was promptly cut off by Harry’s lips finding his own, even though they were both invisible. He let out a soft sigh and tilted his head a little to get a better angle. Harry’s hand was warm against his cheek before it slipped into Louis’ hair. He lost himself in the kisses, trying to get as close to Harry as possible in the cramped cinema chairs. 

“Harry,” Louis said after a while, pulling back and turning them both visible again. “Harry, the arm of this bloody chair is digging into my thigh.” He looked back over to Harry who had kiss swollen lips and glassy eyes and he forgot all about the horrible pressure on his thigh. He all but climbed into Harry’s lap to kiss him again. Harry’s hand slipped underneath his thighs and hiked Louis into his lap completely. Louis felt his foot connect with the box of popcorn, knocking it over and scattering the popcorn all over the floor but he couldn’t bring himself to care, not when Harry’s lips were pressing eagerly against his own.

Louis moaned, unable to help himself and he pressed into Harry’s hold even more. Harry’s hands groped at Louis’ arse over his trousers, fingers digging in in all the right places. Louis fumbled for the buttons at the collar of Harry’s polo shirt, popping them open. He pulled back enough to trail kisses down Harry’s throat, pausing every so often to nip or suck at a spot that Harry responded to brilliantly. He found the pulse point on Harry’s neck and sucked hard, his teeth scraping at the skin. Harry’s fist tightened in his hair, his breathing haggard and coming in short, sharp pants in Louis’ ear.

“Hey, you two! None of that in here!”

Louis pulled back to see a cinema usher flashing a light at them. Louis clambered off Harry’s lap and stood up. “C’mon,” he hissed to Harry, grabbing his hand. He quickly turned them invisible, thankful for the darkness of the cinema, and led Harry out of the doors. Once they were free, he burst out giggling, turning them visible once more. “That was fun.”

Harry grinned at him and shook his head. “What should we do now?” 

Louis stepped closer to Harry, pressing right up into his personal space. “We could go back home…” he said. “Maybe I could read to you until you fall asleep or we could kiss a bit more?”

“The second one,” Harry said eagerly. He dipped his head down and pressed a soft kiss to Louis’ lips. 

“C’mon, then,” Louis whispered, his lips brushing against Harry’s own as he spoke. He took Harry’s hand once more and pointedly winked at the usher they had startled on the way out. 

The drive back to the mansion was short and all too soon, they were walking up to their floor, taking the stairs instead of the lifts. By the time they reached their floor, Louis was a little out of breath. He leaned against Harry who poked his cheek and just grinned.

“Just a few more steps, Lou,” he said encouragingly.

“You should carry me,” Louis replied.

“Hop on,” Harry instructed, crouching down in front of Louis.

“Oh, god, I wasn’t serious,” Louis said but he climbed on Harry’s back anyway, looping his arms around Harry’s shoulders and locking his knees in tight. Harry piggy backed him the few metres to their bedroom. He set Louis down and immediately crowded him against their closed bedroom door. “Hi.”

Harry grinned, his eyes sparkling with happiness. “Hi,” he said softly. He dipped his head and captured Louis’ lips in a soft, slow kiss that left Louis wanting more. He gripped at Harry’s biceps, fingers clenching the material tightly. His lips tingled from the warm pressure. “I’m not sure what normal first date protocol is.”

Louis pulled back enough to look at Harry. He pushed Harry’s fringe off to the side from where it had fallen into his eyes and kissed the tip of Harry’s nose. “I think we’ve passed what normal protocol is for a _lot_ of things,” he said. “Considering you’ve been sleeping in my bed for a long time now.”

“Yeah, but we weren’t together then,” Harry pointed out.

“And yet you still sleep next to me every night,” Louis replied. “This is good, though. Kisses are always good. Unless you have a cold, because you can keep that to yourself.”

“I don’t have a cold,” Harry said with a cheeky grin. 

“Good,” Louis said. “So keep kissing me, then.”

Just as their lips touched, a noise from behind Harry caught their attention. Niall was leaning against the door frame of his bedroom, and he was eating from a large bowl of popcorn in his hands. 

“Don’t mind me, lads,” Niall said. “Carry on.”

“Pervert,” Louis said, poking his tongue out at Niall, who just grinned widely in return. 

“Have a good night, boys?” Niall asked, stuffing more popcorn into his mouth.

“Yes, we did,” Louis replied.

“Home a bit early, aren’t you?” 

“We got kicked out of the cinema,” Harry replied. “Got caught snogging.”

Niall shot them a wicked grin. “Now, kids,” he started and Louis groaned. “I don’t want to hear any funny business coming from your room tonight. Because I will come in there and force myself to sleep between you both.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Louis muttered, mostly to Harry. “Were you this annoying to Zayn and Liam when they got together?” he asked Niall, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Gotta have me fun somewhere,” Niall replied with a shrug. “Have a good night!” he added, making kissy noises at them both. 

Louis fumbled for the door knob and twisted it to let Harry and himself into their room. He stumbled backwards and grabbed at Harry to steady himself but he ended up pulling Harry down with him. They landed in a mess of limbs on the floor and Louis let out a low groan. 

“I think I died,” Louis commented, rubbing his side where Harry’s elbow had connected none too lightly. “You’re an oaf.”

“Hey,” Harry protested. “Am not.”

Louis looked over to see a pout on Harry’s lips. Louis rolled his eyes and pressed his lips to Harry’s own, kissing the pout away. “Bed.”

Harry grinned and scrambled up, holding out his hand for Louis to take. Louis pulled himself up and tapped Harry on the nose in thanks. They changed clothes and climbed into Louis’ bed. Harry immediately wrapped himself around Louis, slipping one of his legs between Louis’ own as they lay on their sides, facing each other. 

“Thanks for tonight,” Louis said, running a hand down the length of Harry’s bare arm. “It was a great first date.”

Harry ducked his head a little. “It was,” he agreed. 

Louis closed the gap between them, kissing Harry gently. Harry responded immediately, his mouth opening under Louis’. They kissed slowly until both of their eyes were drooping closed. They fell asleep with their lips brushing against each other’s and their noses pressed into the other’s cheek, completely curled around each other. Louis felt warm and safe wrapped up in Harry’s arms. He never wanted to lose that feeling, he decided, it was too precious to give up.

~*~  
 _Harry_  


There weren’t many things that annoyed or angered Harry at all. He liked to let things just slide off him and he never really focused on things or obsessed over things like other people did all of the time. Harry liked to live in the now and he liked to deal with whatever was thrown at him when it happened rather than worrying about what might or might not happen. It’s something he loved about himself.

So when Nick interrupted his yoga time, Harry felt sparks of annoyance clawing at his insides but they ebbed away moments later. He couldn’t be mad at Nick; Nick was an awesome friend and an even better teacher. Harry didn’t mind missing out on a little bit of yoga time to listen to whatever Nick had to say.

“Your technique is improving really well,” Nick said as Harry folded himself so he was sitting crossed legged, facing Nick. He may have been interrupted, but he could sure still focus on his breathing and relaxing his mind as Nick spoke to him. 

“Thanks,” Harry said, letting his eyes fall closed.

“I really should join you when you do this,” Nick said. “I’ve been meaning to for ages. Maybe when Cal comes back.”

“That’s not until next year, Nick,” Harry pointed out. “You can join me and Li for yoga anytime.”

“Where is Liam?” Nick asked. “Doesn’t he normally come with you?”

Harry nodded and opened his eyes to look at Nick. “He and Louis wanted to do some more training together. So they’re downstairs somewhere.” Harry shifted his legs from underneath himself and went to stand. Nick’s hand immediately stretched out and Harry clasped it to hoist himself into a standing position. He bent down to pick up his yoga mat and rolled it up tightly. 

“So,” Nick started. “How long have you and Louis been seeing each other?”

Harry froze. He glanced up at Nick who had a curious expression on his face. “A few weeks, why?”

Nick hummed and folded his arms across his chest. “We’ll have to split you boys up soon, then,” he said. “We can’t have _two_ lots of boys dating who live on the same floor sharing rooms. It doesn’t send a very good message to the younger students, does it?”

Harry shook his head. “No,” he replied. “I guess not.”

Nick clapped Harry on the shoulder and squeezed tight. “It’s okay, Harry,” he said. “The end of the school year isn’t that far away and you can see each other whenever you want.”

Harry nodded. “I know,” he agreed. 

“I’d best be on my way, I have to duck out for a few hours this afternoon,” Nick said. “Have a good afternoon, Harry.”

“You too,” he returned, waving Nick off as he left Harry alone in the yoga room. Harry packed his things away and set off for his and Louis’ room with a slightly heavier heart.

Harry made his way up the stairs and when he opened the door to his and Louis’ room a short while later, his eyes widened in surprise. More than half of the things in the room were gone. He wondered if Niall was playing a prank on them when the door disappeared beneath his grasp. Harry stepped back and looked at it with a frown on his face. He reached a hand forwards and touched it. It was still there, physically, but he just couldn’t see it.

“Lou?” he tried.

All at once, everything turned visible again, including Louis who was sitting on his bed, which had been invisible a moment beforehand.

“Hey, baby,” Louis replied with a smile. “How was yoga?”

“…Why was everything invisible?” Harry asked as he closed the door. 

“Training,” Louis replied. “I got bored with force fields so I left Li working up a sweaty mess with Zayn and thought I’d come up here.”

Harry gave him a pointed look.

“ _Fine_ ,” Louis relented. “They got offended when I suggested I join them in their sweaty mess and told me to get lost.”

Harry pouted and all but fell on top of Louis on his bed. “ _Lou_ ,” he whined, nosing at Louis’ cheek.

Louis pushed Harry off and climbed on top of him, pinning his arms to the mattress above his head. “Don’t worry,” he said fondly. “You’re the only one I want to be in a sweaty mess with.”

Harry beamed up at him. “Good,” he replied. “Now, kiss me, you fool.”

Louis rolled his eyes but swooped down and kissed him soundly on the lips. He slid his hands up Harry’s wrists and locked their fingers together, Harry squeezed them reflexively. Louis peppered kisses across Harry’s jaw and down his neck, only stopping when Harry inhaled sharply. Harry flexed his fingers in Louis’ hold and squirmed when Louis kissed softly at the spot on his neck that Louis knew made Harry react every time.

The door to their room banged open and Louis groaned against Harry’s neck. Harry craned his head around to see Niall and Ashley standing there.

“I _clearly_ won!” Ashley said as she pushed passed Niall into the bedroom. “There is no way your super speed is faster than my teleportation!”

Niall scoffed. “I think I just proved that it is,” he said.

“Are you quite finished?” Louis asked, raising an eyebrow at the two of them.

Ashley and Niall jumped like they just realised they had company and Niall waggled his eyebrows at them both. “Having fun, lads?”

“We were until we were interrupted, yes,” Louis replied, shifting so he was sitting up on Harry’s thighs rather than bent over him still.

Niall grinned and moved to sit down next to them on the bed. “Don’t mind us, carry on,” he said with a leer. 

Louis rolled his eyes at the comment and Harry squeezed at his thighs, giving Louis a reassuring look. The offer was a little tempting to Harry. He wanted to keep kissing Louis but he didn’t want Niall and Ashley to be watching them like goldfish all the while. “I’m not snogging you while they’re here,” Louis said, interrupting Harry’s thoughts. Harry pouted. “Perverts, the lot of you.”

Ashley joined them on the bed, making herself comfortable in Niall’s lap. “You two are cute.”

“Of course we are,” Louis replied and Harry beamed up at him. They sat up properly on the bed, shuffling around to get comfortable. Louis leaned back against the headboard and pulled Harry back against his chest. He hooked his chin over Harry’s shoulder and tightened his arms around Harry’s waist. Harry couldn’t help but smile and relax into his boyfriend’s hold. “So, why are you barging into our room and interrupting our very important snogging session?”

“Oh!” Ashley said. “We were racing.”

“Tell her that my super speed is faster than her teleportation!” Niall interjected, looking put out. 

“It’s not,” Harry started. “Unless it’s somewhere that Ashley doesn’t know she’s going. Teleportation is instantaneous. Your super speed, while very fast, still isn’t instantaneous.”

Ashley beamed and moved to wrap her arms around Niall. It resulted in her bosom being right near his face and Harry noticed the change in his expression go from semi-annoyed to one of great interest in a second. When Ashley realised why Niall suddenly wasn’t protesting, she swatted at his arm before she kissed him quickly on the lips. 

“Nick wants us to stop being room mates,” Harry said after a few moments.

“What?” Louis squawked. He twisted so that he could look at Harry properly.

“Yeah,” Harry nodded twice. “He came by the yoga room to tell me that we’ll have to be changing out soon.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Louis said. “Zayn and Liam have been together longer than we have and _they_ still share a room! God, that is _so_ like Nick.”

Harry’s hand covered Louis’ own where it rested on his stomach and he brought it up to his lips to kiss Louis’ palm. “Maybe he’ll forget about it?” he offered softly. 

Louis hummed and dropped a kiss onto the top of Harry’s head. “Hopefully,” he replied. “I don’t think I could sleep without you.”

“Aww!” Ashley cooed. Harry glanced over at her with a beaming smile. He had momentarily forgotten that she and Niall were there still. “You two are the cutest!”

Harry grinned at her before tilting his head back to look at Louis. “I don’t think I could sleep without you either.” He turned a little more and Louis kissed him soundly on the lips. 

“So are we just going to watch you two snog or are we going to actually do something fun with our Saturday?” Niall wondered.

“What did you have in mind?” Louis asked.

“How about a game of hide and seek?” Niall suggested with a grin. “Since we all have some kind of power that enables us to hide, it could be fun.”

“I don’t,” Harry pointed out. “Not like everyone else.”

“I’ll keep you hidden,” Louis said, his lips brushing against the shell of Harry’s ear. Harry’s eyes fluttered closed reflexively at the touch. He didn’t really want to leave Louis but hide and seek with powers sounded fun.

“No, that’s cheating,” Niall said.

“Don’t tell me that you’re not going to super speed off the moment someone gets close to you?” Louis challenged. “Or that Ashley wouldn’t teleport away to a new location.” They both had a guilty look cross their faces, Harry noted. “Exactly. Should we get Liam and Zayn involved?”

“Where are they, anyway?” Ashley wondered. 

“Having sex,” Louis replied with a shrug. “I wonder if they’re done yet…”

“I’m not looking!” Niall exclaimed. Ashley and Louis quickly claimed they weren’t going to either and Harry looked between them all, a crestfallen expression on his face. He was always the last one to realise what was going on. 

“I always lose that game,” he mumbled. 

Louis kissed his cheek. “C’mon, I’ll go with you.”

Harry beamed at him and they got off the bed. They approached Liam and Zayn’s door and Louis knocked. 

“Do you feel lots of lust coming through the walls? Because if you do, we should turn around now…” Louis said.

Harry grinned. “It feels nice, though,” he replied. It wasn’t a strong sense but it was enough to make Harry feel giddy inside. “But I think they’re done.”

A moment later, Liam answered the door, pulling a shirt down over his torso as he did. He leaned against the door and kept it mostly closed. “Hi,” he said. 

“We were going to play hide and seek,” Louis started. Harry bit his lip, trying not to smile too much as he took in Liam’s flushed cheeks, the love bites dotting along his neck and the utter mess of his hair. “But clearly you and Zayn are far too busy, so we won’t bother you.” Louis grinned cheekily at Liam who flushed.

Liam looked over his shoulder and Zayn appeared behind him a moment later, pressed right up against Liam’s back. He wrapped his arms around Liam’s middle and Liam immediately leaned back against him. Harry thought it was sweet.

“Hide and seek?” Zayn repeated.

“Yeah,” Harry said. “It was Niall’s idea. We’re going to use our powers, too, so we can hide from each other.”

“Sounds alright,” Zayn replied with a shrug and Liam nodded as well. 

“Come meet us in our room when you’re ready then,” Louis said. 

Harry glanced at the suspicious stain on Liam’s shirt and laughed to himself as Louis led them back to their room.

“They’re in,” Harry said the moment they got back to their room, climbing back onto the bed and putting his feet straight into Niall’s lap. Niall swatted at his feet but Harry just put them back in Niall’s lap. 

Louis joined them on the bed a moment later. “We should think of some ground rules,” he said, settling in behind Harry. He twisted one of Harry’s curls around his finger and Harry immediately leaned back into his touch. “Like, where we’re allowed to hide, if outside counts or not.”

“Well it’s raining pretty hard out there, so I suggest we stay inside,” Ashley said.

“Yeah, we should. But we should have restrictions on what levels we’re allowed on,” Harry agreed. 

“No underground stuff?” Louis offered. “That way we can’t hide out in a training room or something like that?”

“Are the classrooms off limit?” Zayn asked as he and Liam wandered into the room. Harry looked over at his friends and grinned when he realised that Liam had changed shirts. 

“Nice love bite,” Louis said casually and Harry laughed loudly at that. He quickly slapped his hand over his mouth but it was too late.

“We should stay off the ground floor, too,” Ashley added, ignoring their exchange. “So we don’t disturb students that are trying to do their homework or who are in the common rooms.”

“So second floor up anything is fair game?” Louis asked. Everyone nodded. “Alright, who wants to seek first?”

“I will,” Liam replied. “You’ve got five minutes to hide.”

Everyone scrambled out of the room, including Zayn, much to Harry’s surprise. He thought Zayn would’ve stayed with Liam to help seek them out. Louis grabbed Harry’s hand and dragged him from the room and down two flights of stairs. 

“Where are we going?” he asked excitedly, his voice quiet.

“English room,” Louis whispered back as they descended another set of stairs. “I can hide us both from Liam. God, he was cheeky offering to go first. He can see all of our heat signatures, the sneak.”

“Oh, yeah,” Harry replied. “I forgot about that.”

“I bet he counted on us all forgetting about that,” Louis pointed out. They reached the floor with the English classroom on it and Louis turned the handle. It didn’t budge. He huffed and turned to Harry. “We should try another room.”

“Wait, try this one,” Harry said, stopping outside of Mrs Fitz’s office. The door was unlocked and he pushed it open easily. Louis quickly locked the door behind them and grinned at Harry. 

“Even though Liam can see through walls, he can’t see through my force field,” Louis explained. He concentrated and produced a force field. Harry watched as it expanded, covering the walls of the room, crossing the ceiling and the floor until the entire room was safely encompassed. No matter how many times he watched Louis do that, it still amazed him.

“That’s still so cool,” Harry said and Louis beamed at him. “What now, though?”

“Well, we’re all alone…” Louis started. “I’m sure we can think of something.”

“We could play cards!” Harry exclaimed excitedly. Louis blinked at him. 

“…You want to play cards?” Louis repeated.

“Yeah! It’ll be fun,” he said. “I know Mrs Fitz keeps a deck in here somewhere… I got locked in here last year and I played with them until someone found me.”

Harry crossed the room and started rummaging through drawers. He pushed papers aside until he found the deck and held it up triumphantly. 

They sat down on opposite sides of the desk and Harry dealt the cards so they could play. Harry’s foot pressed against Louis’ own underneath the desk, making Louis smile. Harry’s stomach swooped pleasantly at the look, still amazed that it was directed at him and only him. They played three rounds of go fish and two rounds of snap when Louis looked up at the door all of a sudden.

“What-?” Harry started.

“Shh,” Louis said, glancing at the door. “I think I hear something.”

The door handle jiggled and a moment later, it opened, revealing Mrs Fitz. Harry saw Louis’ expression shift and he knew that he was retracting his force field so that Mrs Fitz could step into the room.

“Harry,” she said. “Did you get stuck in here again, love?”

“Yeah, we did,” Louis replied immediately, which Harry was grateful for. He was a terrible liar and Louis knew it. Harry busied himself with cleaning up the cards, stacking them into a neat little pile before slipping them back into the box.

“Well, best be on then, boys,” Mrs Fitz said. “I’ve got some work to catch up on.”

Louis nodded. “Thanks,” he replied. Louis shut the door behind them and breathed a sigh of relief. “C’mon, we need to find somewhere else to hide.”

As they rounded the corner, they came face to face with Liam who grinned widely.

“Found you,” he said. 

“How’d you-?” Louis started

“Everyone knows the story of Harry getting locked in Mrs Fitz’s office,” Liam replied with a shrug. “I just happened to point out that he may be stuck again.”

“You’re a cheeky shit, Payno,” Louis said, sounding impressed. Liam grinned at them.

“Thank you,” Liam replied with a slight bow. Harry thought it was a stroke of pure genius on Liam’s behalf. He had forgotten that he had told them all the story of when he got stuck in Mrs Fitz’s office. 

“C’mon, let’s go again,” Louis said, taking Harry’s hand in his own once more. “This time, Harry and I are going to hide in plain view of everyone.”

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Chapter warnings** : murder, ptsd, mentions of being sick, familial death.

Chapter Ten  
 _Louis_  


Harry’s nightmares had all but stopped in the few weeks after he and Louis had begun their romantic relationship. Instead of sharing a bed only a few times a week, they shared it every night now. Louis didn’t care that Nick had told them they would need to change rooms; he would still find a way to sleep with Harry every night. It kept them both nightmare free for the most part. It was comforting and necessary, Louis thought.

Every morning where Louis woke up in Harry’s arms after either of them _not_ having nightmares, Louis counted as a win. There were still moments that Louis would catch Harry staring at his hands. Louis would reach over for Harry’s hands and bring them to his lips, kissing each finger individually until Harry stopped staring. He had told Louis that he sometimes still saw blood on them, like it was his fault that Thomas had died. It usually took Louis a few hours to get Harry calm enough that he could think rationally again. It was hard work but Louis wouldn’t trade it for the world, especially not when Harry would look at him with his huge, expressive green eyes where Louis could see all the love that Harry had for him shining through. 

It should have scared Louis how much he felt for Harry but strangely, it didn’t. It felt right. It was like something had been missing from his life beforehand and now that he had Harry, things were gradually falling into place. Harry was his missing puzzle piece. 

Louis finally felt like he was getting a hang on his powers as well. He could produce force fields at will that were strong enough to protect each of the boys while they were training. He could make an entire room full of objects invisible for more than ten minutes solid before getting too tired. That was the only drawback, he thought, that it was so draining. It wasn’t a matter of just turning a room invisible, it was knowing each and every single object in that room, no matter how big or small, and making sure that each of them was individually invisible. It took a lot of concentration from Louis and a lot of power. He was happy with his progress, though, and more importantly, Nick was as well. 

They had been training extra hard after Nick had shifted their simulation days from the Friday to the Monday. He would spend as much time as he could practicing with his powers every day after school and on weekends. He and Harry had had a lot of fun with Louis’ invisibility power. Louis would turn Harry invisible and try and locate him in their room. It was harder than Louis had anticipated. He had thought that just because he could turn something invisible that he would be able to locate it but it wasn’t like that at all. Harry was able to move around, completely undetected by Louis. 

It had turned fun quite a few times. Harry would creep up behind him and wrap his arms tightly around Louis and drop kisses onto Louis’ neck. Or he would tickle Louis, whose concentration would immediately drop, turning Harry visible once more. Even though he worked hard at it, Louis had fun. He wasn’t scared of his powers anymore, not like he used to be. It was like any other muscle in his body; he just had to work at it to strengthen it. 

Nick had changed his training up a lot. Louis had to put a force field around moving objects while keeping them _and_ himself invisible. It was harder work that Louis anticipated and by the time their training was finished, he barely had enough energy to have a shower and slide into bed. He would sleep solidly, though, from sheer exhaustion, and wouldn’t even have enough energy for nightmares let alone anything else.

Waking up was still the best part of his day, Louis thought. He would often wake up before Harry and would just lie there, watching Harry sleep. It was probably considered creepy but Louis didn’t care. Harry looked so peaceful, so relaxed and so impossibly _young_ while he slept. If anyone saw Harry like this, no one would ever believe the things he could do. Louis was extremely proud of Harry. 

He liked to wake Harry up with soft kisses as well. Harry’s nose crinkled adorably every time and his eyes would slowly flutter open. His smile would warm Louis all the way down to his toes, despite the cold Scottish weather, and they would kiss slowly until one of their alarms would go off. 

Friday morning was no different. Harry was sleeping soundly when Louis woke. His eyelashes were fanned out against his cheeks, looking impossibly gorgeous. Louis could see Harry’s mouth twitching and his dimple poked into his cheek when he smiled. Louis lay there, watching his boyfriend sleeping, glad that he was having good dreams to be smiling in his slumber. Louis traced the pad of his thumb over Harry’s full, pink lips before dipping his head forwards, replacing it with his own lips to kiss him once. Harry made a soft noise and he blinked his eyes open, smiling at Louis a moment later. He snuggled into Louis’ side and wrapped his arms tightly around Louis’ middle.

“Morning,” Harry mumbled against Louis’ chest. 

“Morning,” Louis echoed, tangling his fingers in Harry’s hair, scratching slowly at Harry’s scalp. Harry let out a pleased noise and tilted his head up to kiss Louis on the lips again. 

“Wha’s time?” Harry mumbled. 

“Not sure,” Louis replied. “I just woke up.”

Harry hummed and dropped his head down onto Louis’ shoulder, his eyelashes tickling Louis’ neck as he closed them again. He kept scratching at Harry’s scalp with his hand and closed his own eyes again. He figured he could catch a few more minutes of sleep before his alarm went off. 

Their bedroom door opened before that happened, though, and Niall wandered in, rubbing at his eyes with one first, just in his boxer shorts.

“What’s up?” Louis asked softly. He didn’t want to disturb Harry who had fallen back asleep.

“Nightmare,” Niall replied. Wordlessly, he climbed into the bed on Louis’ other side and snuggled in close. Louis wrapped an arm around Niall and let him curl into his chest. Niall’s breath puffed against his neck and all too soon, his breathing evened out as he fell back asleep.

Louis stroked a hand down Niall’s naked back in a soothing manner. He didn’t fall back asleep again, though, too unsettled to even try. He didn’t like when Niall had nightmares. It rarely happened but when it did, it made Louis feel on edge all day. Niall wasn’t someone who easily got put out by anything, or annoyed at things, he was too carefree; so for him to be unsettled by a nightmare, it made Louis wonder what was going on.

He knew it was silly, though, everyone had nightmares every now and then. He guessed it was because he couldn’t protect Niall in his dreams like he could in reality. Louis didn’t like feeling as though he couldn’t protect these boys at all times. They were his family now – the only one he had – and he needed to keep them safe at all times.

Eventually, Louis’ alarm went off and he struggled under the weight of the two boys curled around him to reach for his phone. He switched it off and set it back down. Harry groaned and buried his face in Louis’ neck.

“Don’ wanna wake up,” he mumbled. 

“Harry, shut up, trying to sleep,” Niall replied.

Louis huffed. “Both of you need to wake up, I have to pee,” he said. 

After much difficulty, Louis managed to extract himself from the tangle of boys and he shuffled out of the room to the bathrooms. He yawned and went about his business, bumping into Zayn who looked positively sleep rumpled as well.

“Good night?” Louis asked teasingly with a wink.

“Not really,” Zayn replied. “I think Liam’s coming down with something. He was up half of the night coughing.”

“Shit,” Louis said. “Keep your distance then, I don’t want it.”

Zayn leaned over and licked a stripe up Louis’ neck. “Sorry, I slipped.”

“Bastard,” Louis replied. He washed his neck with soap before leaving for his bedroom once again. 

Both Niall and Harry were still in bed when he walked in. They were curled around each other, sound asleep. Louis sighed. He didn’t have the heart to wake them but they didn’t have a proper reason to skip classes at all. He climbed up on the bed and lay down across them both, bouncing a little.

“Wake up!” he cheered too loudly. Niall pushed him to the floor. 

“Ouch,” Louis said, rubbing his elbow. “That was mean.”

“Your face is mean,” Niall retaliated. “I’m trying to snuggle with Harry here, you’re ruining it.”

“That’s my boyfriend, Horan,” Louis said as he got up off the floor. “I think you’ll find your _girl_ friend is on another floor.”

“Yeah but Harry’s right here and he snuggles really good,” Niall protested without looking up.

“I do,” Harry agreed with a grin.

Louis punched both of them in the leg over the covers. “Get up you lazy tossers.”

“ _Lou_ ,” Harry whined. “Come snuggle with us.”

“I can’t,” Louis replied, slightly annoyed. He moved to his dresser drawers and pulled out a shirt and some underwear. “We have to get up because it’s a school day and you two are going to accompany me to class even if I have to drag you out of bed.”

“’M up,” Harry mumbled, throwing back the covers. He padded over to where Louis was and draped himself across Louis’ back. He pressed his nose into Louis’ hair and kissed the back of Louis’ neck softly. “You smell good,” he whispered against Louis’ skin. Louis’ eyes automatically fluttered closed and he gripped Harry’s hand that was slowly making its way up his still naked torso. Louis tilted his head back and captured Harry’s lips in a kiss. The angle was off but the way Harry’s hands gripped at his hips made it worth it.

He turned in Harry’s arms and kissed him properly, losing himself in the simple action of kissing Harry. Harry moaned and crowded Louis up against the dresser until Louis’ back was pressed awkwardly against it. The handles dug into his bare skin, biting into his flesh but he didn’t care. Not when Harry’s hand slipped behind him and grabbed at his arse over his underwear and squeezed. 

They hadn’t really ventured into overly sexual nature at all. There hadn’t been time to, much to their frustration, but every now and then, Harry would grab Louis’ arse and just pull him close enough so that Louis could feel the outline of every single muscle of Harry’s pressed against his own. It was enough to make Louis’ head dizzy with lust. 

“Where’s the popcorn?”

Louis pulled back, startled, and he glared over at Niall. He had forgotten that Niall was still there and from the look on Harry’s face, he had as well.

“Don’t stop on my account,” Niall said. “This is a good show.”

Louis rolled his eyes and batted Harry away when he started to kiss his way up Louis’ neck.

“We should skip class today,” Harry whispered as he pressed a kiss right before Louis’ earlobe. “We could spend the day in bed.”

Louis whined. “As much as I would love that,” he started. “And believe me, I _would_ , we can’t. Nick said something about extra training tonight and Zayn just told me that Liam’s ill, so it’ll look suspicious if we’re all not there.”

Harry pouted and Louis felt his resolve start to crumble. Before Harry could say anything, Zayn barged into the room. 

“Li is ill,” he said. “Stop snogging and come calm him down, Harry. He’s stressing out massively right now.”

Harry shot Louis a longing look and gave him a quick kiss before he let Louis go so he could leave with Zayn.

“Mate,” Niall started once the door was closed. “That was hot.”

Louis threw at t-shirt at Niall’s head. “I thought you were straight?” he asked.

Niall grinned and shook his head. “I’m fluid,” he replied. “In case you hadn’t noticed, _none_ of us are straight. Harry and you are both as gay as they come. Zayn is pansexual, Liam is demisexual and even Ashley is bisexual.”

Louis nodded. “Well, cool,” he said. “At least I’m not the only gay in the village.”

Niall laughed loudly, obviously getting the reference, and he pulled the shirt Louis had thrown at him over his head. “Nah, mate,” he said. “Far from it.”

Louis changed clothes and pushed Niall out of his bed so that he could make it. He grinned when Niall landed on the floor with a thump and a groan. He immediately got up and helped Louis make the bed though, which Louis was grateful for. 

“It’s me and Ashley’s monthaversary this weekend,” Niall said as he rummaged through Harry’s wardrobe for a pair of trousers to wear. Louis wasn’t sure why he didn’t just go to his own room to get some trousers, but they all had clothes in each other’s rooms, and Niall was bound to have left something behind. Harry was meticulous at putting things away. After a moment, Niall pulled a pair of jeans from Harry’s wardrobe and slipped them on. “I’m gonna take her out and do a nice, proper wine and dine, you know?”

“I reckon she’d like that,” Louis replied as he sat down on Harry’s bed. “Make sure you get her a nice present too. She’s a proper lass and she deserves something nice.”

Niall’s expression changed to one of abject horror. “What do I get her?”

Louis shrugged. “You could always get her a necklace or something pretty? Girls like that, don’t they?”

“I don’t know,” Niall replied, slumping onto the bed next to Louis. “Shit. I’ll have to ask Zayn. He’s the most romantic one out of us.”

“Hey, I’m romantic!” Louis protested.

“Yeah, I know, but you don’t know anything about girls,” Niall said, bumping his shoulder against Louis’ own.

“I’ll have you know I know a _lot_ more about girls than you’ll ever know,” Louis said indignantly. “Get her a necklace. Maybe with the letter A for a pendant. Make sure it’s gold as well, so it doesn’t clash with her complexion.”

Niall stared at him for a few long moments. “I love you,” he said. “If we both weren’t in relationships, you and me could’ve made a go of it.”

“Nah,” Louis said, shaking his head. “I was saving myself for Zayn.”

Niall snorted loudly. “He would’ve killed you in the first week.”

“True,” Louis agreed. He got up off the bed and walked to the door. “C’mon, let’s go see how Prince Payne is doing.”

Niall followed him and they reached Zayn and Liam’s room, only to see Liam looking positively pale and sweaty. Zayn was on one side of Liam, holding a flannel to his head and Harry had one of Liam’s hands in his own. He was muttering things that Louis couldn’t hear but he figured it was helping to soothe Liam somehow. 

“You look like shit, Li,” Niall said as he climbed onto the end of the bed. He patted Liam’s let over the covers and Liam shot him a small smile.

“Don’t get too close,” Liam said, his voice rough. “I don’t want you all to get sick.”

“Me insides are made of iron, don’t you know?” Niall joked. “Besides, if we get sick, we get sick.”

Louis perched on the bed next to him. “I’m already gonna get it,” he said. “Zayn licked me before so I’m probably already festering with germs. Sorry, Harry, I shouldn’t have kissed you.”

Harry shrugged. “I don’t care,” he replied. “We’ll all get it anyway.”

“Niall’s already sent a note to the teachers saying that Li and I will be missing class today,” Zayn said. 

“We should all just skip,” Niall said, lying down upside down, his head hanging over the side of the bed. “Then we don’t contaminate the other students.”

“It’s probably already happened,” Harry pointed out. “Someone had to have given it to Liam, so everyone will probably get it at some point.”

Louis crinkled his nose. “Well, I can’t get out of lessons today. Nick will have my head if I do.”

Liam groaned and Zayn immediately reacted, asking what he wanted. Louis thought it was sweet how caring they were of each other. Liam coughed and Louis cringed. It sounded awful. He hoped that he didn’t get whatever it was that Liam had. He knew it was unlikely but he could still hope. 

“We’d better go down to breakfast,” Niall said after a few minutes.

“I’m going to stay here for a little longer,” Harry said. “I’ll grab a muffin and meet you in English.”

“Alright,” Louis said. “Feel better, Liam.”

“Thanks,” Liam croaked. 

He patted Liam’s leg over the blankets once more and left the room with Niall. “God, he looked miserable.”

“I know,” Niall agreed. “I hate when Liam gets sick. At the start of last year, he had tonsillitis and it was awful. He ended up having them removed here, Doctor Peters did it for him, but it was awful. His powers kept reacting because of how sick he was, and there had to be fire extinguishers everywhere in case Liam accidentally set fire to something.”

Louis bit his lip and tried not to laugh at the imagery it conjured up. “I’m sad I missed that,” he said.

“Don’t be,” Niall said. “Liam set fire to the entire medic wing by accident. That’s why we got a new one.”

“Wow,” Louis said in awe. “I didn’t know that.”

Niall nodded. “Liam felt so bad afterwards,” he explained. “He couldn’t stop apologising so Zayn convinced his stepdad that he needed to donate money to the school because _he_ had caused the accident.”

“He’s been in love with Liam for years, hasn’t he?” 

“Even longer than that,” Niall commented. “They were just too stupid to do anything about it. A bit like you and Harry. Not me, I’m the opposite. If I see someone I like, I go for it.”

“Is that why Ashley kissed you first?” Louis quipped. 

Niall grinned at him. “It worked though,” he said as they entered the dining hall to get breakfast. 

The day passed too slowly for Louis’ liking. Without Zayn and Liam there with him in the classes that Niall and Harry weren’t in, he felt like he got nothing done. It was boring. The only bright spot was seeing Harry at lunch but even then it was rushed as he wanted to make sure that Liam was doing okay. 

Louis had huffed but he knew that Harry wouldn’t feel settled until he’d seen Liam for himself. He figured it was his empathic ability being demanding but Louis knew that Harry was just that caring anyway.

After lunch, Louis had met Nick in the training room, in his X-Men suit already. He waited for Nick to finish up on his phone, leaning against the wall near the door. Finally, Nick finished and he turned to Louis with a big smile that made Louis’ stomach jolt unpleasantly.

“Right, good, you’re here,” Nick said. “I want to test your powers on a larger scale today.”

Louis looked at Nick hesitantly. “Like how?” he asked. “I’ve been practicing every day and my concentration is getting better but…”

Nick waved a hand at Louis, effectively cutting him off. “Louis, if I didn’t think you were up to it, I wouldn’t say,” he said. “Now, I’ve got a few errands to run and I want you to keep me company.”

Louis frowned in confusion. “Errands?” he repeated. He wasn’t sure how _that_ was meant to help him with his powers. He figured Nick had some kind of plan that he was going to spring on him to see how he coped under pressure. It made Louis nervous. He liked the danger room sessions because he knew there was an ending to it all. Being out in public and potentially having to use his powers scared Louis. He wasn’t going to admit that to Nick, though. He didn’t need Nick thinking he was weak. He wasn’t weak, he was just cautious. 

He had complete faith in his abilities and he had worked hard on strengthening them since the motorway accident. It just made him nervous not knowing what was going to happen.

“Yes, errands,” Nick said. “C’mon, we’re going to be late.”

“Can I change first?” Louis asked, gesturing to his X-Men suit.

“No need,” Nick said. “You won’t be getting out of the car much.”

Louis nodded warily and followed Nick down to the garage. They stopped at a car that Louis figured was Nick’s own when he unlocked it. He climbed into the front passenger seat while Nick shed his jacket and threw it into the back, wearing his own leather X-Men suit underneath. It was the first time that Louis had seen him in it, as Nick usually just wore his regular clothes in their training sessions. It didn’t help the feeling in the pit of Louis’ stomach that something wasn’t right. 

The first place they stopped at wasn’t that far from the mansion. It was a record store and Nick came out a few minutes later with a large bag. He put into the backseat of the car and they carried on their journey. 

They made a few other stops and Louis stayed in the car the entire time. The anxious feeling in his chest grew with every passing minute. He tried to recollect Harry’s soothing voice telling him how to find his centre like they had practiced in yoga. Louis took deep breaths and focused on the voice. He calmed down enough that his palms stopped producing a force field from them every few moments that Nick was away. 

“Here we go,” Nick said as they stopped outside of a small looking house. Louis looked out of his window. It didn’t look very inviting, he thought. It was a little run down, he thought. There wasn’t anything appealing or overly note-worthy about it but Nick looked at it like it held all of the answers. “I want you to keep your force field up at all times, okay?”

Louis nodded. “I don’t–”

“Just do it,” Nick said. “And keep one around me too, just like we practiced. I know it takes a lot of energy, that’s why I got you this.” He pressed a cold can of Red Bull into Louis’ hand and cracked the top. “Drink up; you’ll need your strength.”

The nervous feeling intensified as Louis drank the entire can in one hit. He winced at the fizziness sliding down his throat. He burped and excused himself but Nick wasn’t paying attention. He had his phone out again and was tapping away on the touch screen. He slid it back into his pocket and Louis felt a buzzing in his veins, knowing that the drink was kicking in.

“Good,” Nick said as he glanced over at Louis. “Let’s go in.”

They got out of the car and Louis looked up at the house. It looked even more ominous as they approached it. Nick walked straight in without knocking. They stopped in the kitchen and Nick patted Louis on the shoulder.

“I won’t be long,” Nick said. “But I need you to keep concentrating hard, okay?” Louis nodded. “There’s a good lad. Stay here, okay?”

Louis chewed on his bottom lip as Nick ascended the staircase off to the side of the kitchen. Nerves gnawed at the pit of his stomach. He wasn’t sure what it was but something wasn’t sitting right. 

The kitchen wasn’t anything exciting. There was a small, round table, with two kitchen chairs at opposite ends, sitting towards the right hand side. Louis wanted to poke around but he didn’t want his concentration to slip, either. He wasn’t sure what was going on but he knew he needed to keep his focus. He tapped his foot against the hardwood floor, bored already. Louis wandered over to the fridge and opened it. There weren’t many things inside of it. A stick of butter that was left uncovered looked like it had seen better days and there were a few bottles of beer lining the bottom shelf next to a half a bunch of celery. It wasn’t appealing at all. Whoever lived there desperately needed to get some groceries, Louis thought.

A shout startled Louis and he quickly mentally checked that his force fields were still intact. Once he was certain they were fine, he glanced up at the ceiling, wondering what was going on. Louis bit his lip and turned himself completely invisible. Thanks to the energy drink, he knew he wouldn’t get wiped out so quickly. The downside is that he would crash harder but it was a Friday, he could rest over the weekend. He’s sure that Harry wouldn’t mind snuggling with him all weekend. Unless they were both sick from whatever Liam had that was making him ill. It would result in them both staying in bed either way, though.

Louis headed up the stairs towards wherever the voices were coming from. He wasn’t sure if it was Nick or whoever was in the house that had shouted but he wanted to find out. If something had happened to Nick, Louis knew he’d feel responsible for it, so he wanted to get Nick out of there as soon as possible. 

More shouting came from down the hall once Louis reached the top of the stairs. A door at the end of the hall was open and Louis stepped forwards, trying to be as quiet as possible. His invisibility may shield him from view but it did nothing for his footsteps, sadly. He inched his way down, dread filling his stomach. He took a deep breath and peered into the room just enough so that he could see what was going on.

Louis’ eyes widened when he saw an older looking man grasping Nick’s arm tightly. His fingers sparked and Louis recognised it as electricity. It was the same power that one of the younger students that went to the school had. 

The electricity wasn’t doing anything to Nick though, Louis noted. He closed his eyes and strengthened the force field around Nick to protect him. 

The man shouted again in another language and Louis saw Nick lean closer to him. He whispered something that Louis couldn’t hear and he snapped the guy’s wrist that was holding onto his own. Louis physically recoiled. He held his breath so that Nick couldn’t hear him and he watched, helplessly as, in the next moment, Nick grabbed the guy’s head and twisted.

It made a sickening crunch as the bones cracked and Louis swayed on the spot. He slammed his eyes closed and clamped his mouth shut so he didn’t throw up everywhere. There was a thump and Louis opened his eyes to see the body of the man on the floor. He hastily left the room, heading down to the kitchen where Nick had left him. His mind raced with what he had just witnessed. He threw up into the sink and turned the tap on to wash it away. He rinsed out his mouth before throwing up again. His hands shook as he reached for the tap to turn it off and he noticed that he was visible once more.

When Louis looked up, Nick was beside him, a hand on his back.

“Are you not well, Louis?” he asked. “I heard Liam was ill, I hope you haven’t got whatever it is, too.”

Louis stared at him. He couldn’t believe what Nick was saying. He had just… He had just _killed_ someone and he had his hand on Louis’ back like nothing had happened. Louis’ stomach rolled and he scrunched his eyes closed again, trying to focus on his breathing. 

“Here, have some water, you look terrible,” Nick said. He opened a cupboard and pulled out a glass which he filled with water from the tap. Louis shakily took it, and sipped from it. He knew he was staring at Nick with wide eyes. Panic was probably evident across his face. He was stuck. Nick had him cornered against the sink and Louis couldn’t move. He didn’t even know if he _could_ move. He couldn’t concentrate enough to even have a proper sip from his glass let alone do anything else. “There,” Nick said softly, putting a hand to Louis’ forehead. “You’re looking better already.”

Louis set the glass down in the sink and took a few deep breaths. “What…”

Nick fixed him with a look. “Oh? The shouting. Nothing to worry about,” he said like nothing had happened. “Just an old friend and an old disagreement. Not to worry, though. It’s all been cleared up now.”

He really wasn’t going to admit it, Louis thought. He looked at Nick in disbelief. “I saw…”

The next moment, Nick was in his space again, his hand cupping Louis’ neck in a way that only Harry had ever done before. His thumb pressed against the pulse point on Louis’ neck and pressed ever so slightly. The pressure made Louis feel sick.

“Louis,” Nick started slowly. “You may _think_ you saw something up there.” He pressed a little harder and Louis’ gaze locked with Nick’s own. “But you saw nothing. And, if you say anything, well, darling, you’re an accessory to murder, what with you being here, _protecting_ me and not doing a thing about it.” Nick gave him a beaming grin. His hand fell away from Louis’ neck and patted his cheek twice before he stepped back. “Right. C’mon, then, we have to get you back to school before dinner time!”

Nick left the room with a flourish. Louis gripped at the sink with his hand. He felt sick. He couldn’t share a car with Nick after what had just happened. He leaned over the sink and threw up once more, nothing but bile coming up this time. He rinsed his mouth under the tap. His tongue felt heavy in his mouth and he knew he probably looked like someone who had just been sick a bunch of times but all he could see, all he could hear was the look on the man’s face and the sound of his neck being snapped. 

Louis sunk to the floor in the kitchen, his breath coming in short, sharp bursts. His cheeks felt wet and when he lifted a hand up to wipe them, he realised he had been crying. He rarely cried. His hands shook and he clasped them tightly in front of himself, trying to focus on breathing properly. He could practically feel Nick’s disdain for him from where he was. 

Louis suddenly realised where he was and he stood. He had to get out of there. He couldn’t be in this house any longer. Not with… He looked up at the ceiling and hoped that someone would find the body before it was too late. He made his way outside, where Nick was sitting in the car, on his phone. He was _smiling_ , like nothing had happened. Louis felt scared. He was petrified to get into the car with Nick. He had no idea what else Nick was capable of. 

“About time,” Nick said as he rolled down his window, glancing at Louis who was standing at the front door still. “Get in, we have to go.”

He walked towards the car and silently got into the front passenger seat. He stayed silent the entire drive back to the school. Nick didn’t try and interact with him, either, which Louis was thankful for. 

Nick grabbed Louis’ hand before he could get out of the car and he squeezed hard. “Now, Louis, don’t disappoint me.”

Louis wrenched his hand from Nick’s and got away as quickly as he could. He made his way up to his floor but he couldn’t make himself get out of the lift. Not when Harry could be there. He’d known in an instant that something was wrong with Louis and Louis couldn’t put him in that kind of position. He pushed the button in the lifts again for another floor and stepped out. He wasn’t sure who lived on this floor but it was away from Harry, Liam, Zayn and Niall, and Louis needed that right now. 

He stumbled towards the bathrooms and ripped off his X-Men suit the moment he got in there. He stepped into a shower stall and turned it on fully before sinking to the floor. He could feel the water pelting down on him, flattening his hair against his head. He had no idea how to start comprehending something like that. Nick was a _teacher_ he was supposed to be a trusted member of the faculty but Louis had just witnessed something unforgivable.

He had witnessed it and had done nothing to stop it.

Nick was right. He was as much to blame as Nick was. With that thought swirling around in his mind, Louis retched again, leaning over the drain. A broken sob escaped his mouth as he curled on the tiled floor. He watched the water swirling down the drain and wondered how he could live with himself after this.

Harry found him more than an hour later. The water had long gone cold, not that Louis really noticed. 

“Shit, Lou,” Harry whispered. He bundled Louis up in several towels and held him against his chest. Louis shivered and clenched his fist in Harry’s jumper. He couldn’t cry. He couldn’t do that to Harry.

“Are you ill?” Harry asked after a while. “Do you have what Liam has?” Louis nodded and closed his eyes. He needed Harry to believe whatever lie that could explain why Louis felt so bad. 

Eventually they made their way up to their bedroom. Louis’ hands shook, whether from the cold or from his own nerves, he wasn’t sure. He stepped into some underwear and a pair of jogging bottoms before climbing under the covers of the bed. 

“I wish my powers would work on you,” Harry said as he climbed into the bed after Louis, curling himself around Louis’ back. “Then I could make you feel better.”

Louis scrunched his eyes closed and bit back a sob. Even if Harry could use his powers on him, Louis doubted that anything could make him feel better right then.

~*~

The nightmares started straight away.

Louis woke up in the middle of the night, gasping for air and drenched in a cold sweat. He pushed the covers off his body and swung his legs over the side of the bed, his entire body shaking.

“Lou?” Harry’s soft, concerned voice asked from behind him. “Are you alright?”

“Y-yeah,” Louis lied. “Go back to sleep, Harry.”

The bed dipped as Harry sat up and he shifted so he was pressed against Louis’ back. “You’re freezing, Lou.”

Louis stayed silent as Harry kissed the back of his neck once before he got out of bed. He took a deep breath and rubbed at his eyes. Harry came back a moment later and pressed a woollen jumper into his hands. 

“Here,” Harry said. “Put this on, you’re too cold.”

Louis nodded and slipped the material over his head. 

“Liam’s feeling better,” Harry said. “So hopefully you won’t be ill for too much longer.”

“Yeah,” Louis said. Harry tugged at his arm and Louis lay back down on his back. Harry curled around him, resting his head on Louis’ chest. 

“Lou?” 

“Yeah, Haz?”

“It’ll be over soon,” Harry said. “You’ll feel right as rain in no time.”

Louis wanted to cry at that. He scrunched his eyes closed and took a deep breath. “Yeah,” he replied. 

He knew it wasn’t true, not in the slightest, but he couldn’t share it with Harry. He couldn’t share it with anyone. Louis was going to be alone in this, no matter how much he wanted to change it. He couldn’t put the other boys in danger like that. He wasn’t even sure how he was going to let them go to their classes with Nick, knowing what he did. He felt sick at the thought of Nick getting close to the boys. Louis’ stomach rolled and he got out of bed, dashing to the bathrooms to dry heave over one of the toilets. 

“Oh, Lou,” Harry said from behind him. He put his hand on Louis’ back and rubbed slow, soothing circles. 

Louis bit his lip so hard he drew blood. He wasn’t sure how he was going to do any of this.

“C’mon, let’s get you back to bed,” Harry said after he had coaxed Louis up and into washing out his mouth. 

Louis nodded and silently followed Harry back to their room. Harry’s hand felt heavy in his own. He climbed back into bed and rolled onto his side. Harry immediately wrapped himself around Louis from behind. He peppered kisses along the back of Louis’ neck before whispering ‘good night’ to him. 

It took a while for Louis to relax enough to close his eyes but he eventually fell into a fitful sleep. 

He woke with a start a few hours later. He lay there in bed, Harry still curled around him, his heart thumping in his chest. Louis rubbed at his eyes with his free hand and let out a sigh. He glanced down at Harry who was still sleeping soundly. He couldn’t do this to Harry, he decided as he slipped out of the bed. Louis changed into a fresh pair of jogging bottoms and a t-shirt and left Harry asleep in bed. 

The sun was just starting to rise when Louis got outside. The grass was damp underneath his shoes, making soft squeaking noises as he walked. He got to the running track and approached the start line. He stretched his leg muscles for a few minutes to warm up and started to jog. It was soothing, the way his feet pounded on the ground, always one foot in front of the other. It gave him something to focus on, something else to think about rather than the thoughts going through his head. 

Louis ran. 

He ran every day after that, exhausting himself beyond what he was used to. Harry had come down with Liam’s bug and after that, both Niall and Zayn had got it. Everyone had thought Louis already had it, so he was safe. It was harder than he thought keeping this from his friends. The secret gnawed at his insides on a daily basis. He wanted to tell them, wanted to share his worries, his fears, but every time he thought he was strong enough to tell them, Nick’s face crept into his mind. The phantom pressure of Nick’s hand on his neck, squeezing ever so slightly was enough to send Louis mentally running. He couldn’t put them in danger like that.

So he kept it to himself.

It made him twitchy. At the slightest thing that startled him, Louis would whip a force field around whatever of his friends were closest. They were invisible ones, thankfully, so he didn’t have to answer awkward questions, but Louis always felt drained afterwards. His powers had been off ever since that day. It took all of his energy to just produce a small force field when he tried to concentrate but at the slightest movement, he would produce one that was impossibly strong. 

He had also started turning invisible again at a moment’s notice. The boys laughed it off at first, of course, but every time it happened, Louis could see the concern etched on Harry’s face. He brushed it off, though. He couldn’t concern these boys, these precious and innocent boys, with his worries. It was for their own safety.

A week later, Louis had some kind of control over his powers again. It wasn’t anywhere near what it used to be but he could at least control his invisibility again, for the most part. He still saw his hands disappearing on occasion, flickering in and out of sight before he would force himself to concentrate so he didn’t do it again.

Monday morning had seen Louis in a state of panic. He couldn’t face Nick, not after what had happened. He had no idea how he was going to cope with it. Thankfully Harry had been ill that day, so Louis had stayed in bed with him, holding Harry while he slept. It was a small respite, though. Louis knew that he couldn’t avoid Nick forever, especially not when they all lived in the same mansion.

He had managed to avoid it so far. Nick had been absent a few days that week and Louis had breathed a sigh of relief for a moment before he wondered if Nick was out there killing more people. He didn’t even know _why_ Nick had killed that man. Not that it would have made it any better, of course, but it was just all so odd to Louis. He figured out after that day that Nick needed Louis’ powers to shield him from the other man’s powers. If Louis hadn’t have been there, Nick probably would have been electrocuted to death. Louis wasn’t sure which death would have been preferable. For all he knew, the guy that Nick had killed had been a mass murderer himself and Nick was doing the world a favour by killing him. He couldn’t afford to think like that, though. He had witnessed Nick kill someone in cold blood and no matter who the other person was, it was still wrong. 

“Hey,” Harry said as he closed the door to their bedroom. It was the end of the week. Louis had made it through an entire week without completely breaking down. He felt like it was some cause for celebration but he wasn’t sure if he could even muster up a smile let alone any other kind of celebratory feelings. “You alright?”

Louis nodded. “Of course,” he replied. Harry closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around Louis in a tight hug. Louis closed his eyes and relaxed into the touch. Harry pressed a kiss to his shoulder and then his neck before pulling back. 

“I’ve missed you this week,” Harry said softly. 

Louis reached up and pushed Harry’s hair to the side and kissed him soundly on the lips. “I’ve been right here,” he said. 

“No, you haven’t,” Harry commented. Worry was evident in his eyes. Louis hated himself for being the one that put it there. “You’re physically here, Lou, but I feel like you’ve been absent all week. What’s wrong?”

Louis broke the hold and sat down on his bed. Harry was far too perceptive for his own good. Louis kicked off his shoes and tucked his legs underneath himself, making himself impossibly small. “I want to tell you something,” he said. “Maybe it’d be best if the others knew as well?”

“Okay,” Harry replied with a nod. “Do you want me to go and get them?”

“Yeah,” Louis said. 

“I’ll be right back, alright?” 

Louis nodded and Harry kissed him briefly before leaving. Panic crept up Louis’ chest, clawing up his throat. He couldn’t tell them, it was stupid of him to even think that he could, it would put them all in danger, of that he was certain.

Sooner than Louis anticipated, his room filled with his best friends. Liam and Zayn squashed together at the end of the bed while Niall and Ashley fit in as best as they could. Harry sat next to Louis and took Louis’ hand in his own, giving it an encouraging squeeze. They all looked at Louis and Louis could feel each stare boring into his soul. He couldn’t do this to these people. They didn’t need this.

“In your own time, Lou,” Harry said encouragingly. He was too perfect for his own good, Louis thought. Too caring, too compassionate. It was no wonder his empathic abilities were as great as they were.

“Um,” Louis started. “I was in an accident.”

It wasn’t what he had planned to tell them but the moment he opened his mouth, the entire story came pouring out. Liam shot him an reassuring look and Louis took a breath, ready to tell them the story of how he had come into his powers.

Doctor Peters had told Louis, after bouts of testing, that even though he hadn’t displayed any outward signs of having abilities, that he’d always had a shield around his mind. It had grown as he had grown and turned into his force fields. It was one of the reasons why he had never been found as a young teen and brought to the school – no one knew he existed because of his shields and it wasn’t until the shield around his mind had disappeared at his accident that they found him. Louis figured that was supposed to reassure him in some way but he wasn’t sure that it did.

“Um, you guys don’t know this, but I had four sisters.” He wondered if any of them would pick up on his use of past tense. 

Louis looked down at his hands, at Harry’s hand holding his own, their fingers pressed together tightly. 

“It’s okay, Lou,” Harry said softly, his voice encouraging. Louis took a deep breath and nodded.

“It, uh,” he swallowed thickly. “Uh. They died.”

Louis couldn’t bring himself to lift his head to see the looks on their faces. He knew that look of pity all too well – he didn’t want to see that look from them. 

He kept talking, telling them the entire story of what had happened before he started at Xavier’s School.

\--- 

“Girls, c’mon, we’re going to be late!” Jay called up the stairs. 

Louis bounded down them a moment later and grabbed the car keys. “Mum, can I drive?” he asked as he slipped his feet into a worn pair of Toms. 

“Not today, Boobear,” Jay replied, sounding tired. “Girls! Now!” 

“I don’t even get why we’re going to this place,” Felicite said as she descended the stairs, a put out look on her face. “You’re shipping me off to boarding school next week anyway, what’s the point in spending _family_ time together?”

“The point is, young lady,” Jay started, “that we aren’t going to get to spend much time together as a family after you go to school, so we’re making the most of it. No arguments.”

Felicite made a face at her. “It’s just a stupid park.”

“Not true, Fizzy,” Louis interjected, twirling the car keys around his finger. “We’re going to that carnival _at_ that stupid park. There’s a difference. Mum, can I please drive?”

Jay huffed. “Louis, I’m a little preoccupied here, okay?” She turned back to the stairs after slinging a large bag over her shoulder. “Lottie, Daisy and Phoebe! Please hurry up!”

The twins came bounding down the stairs a moment later, holding hands. They giggled and threw themselves at Louis, who caught them easily, peppering the tops of their heads with kisses, causing them to squeal happily at him.

“Keep it down inside, girls,” Jay said as she wandered out of the lounge room again, heading for the kitchen.

“Alright, little monsters,” Louis said. “Let’s get you in the car!” He scooped the twins up, one under each arm and took them out to the car. Daisy giggled loudly and Phoebe covered her giggling mouth with her little hands as he set them down on the ground. He got them into their seats easily and clicked their seat belts into place.

“Are we going on lots of rides today?” Daisy asked excitedly. 

“I want to ride a pony!” Phoebe piped up.

“I’m sure we can do it all,” Louis assured them. Felicite pushed passed him a moment later to climb into the back of the van. The twins grinned at him and he pinched each of their cheeks lightly, making faces at them as he did.

“Louis, could you move your huge arse out the way so I can get into the car?” Charlotte snarked from behind him.

Louis turned around. “My arse is _fabulous_ , thank you very much, Lottie,” he said, patting it twice and throwing her a wink.

Charlotte rolled her eyes and pushed her long blonde hair over her shoulder. “I’m sure that’s what all of your boyfriends tell you but you’re in my way.”

Louis stepped back and made a grand sweeping gesture. “Your chariot awaits, milady,” he said dramatically. The twins giggled at him and he threw them a wink. Charlotte sighed and whacked him with her handbag as she got into the car next to Felicite.

“Where’s mum?” Louis asked as he shut the door closed. 

“Using the loo,” Charlotte replied. She slipped an ear bud into each ear and Louis swore as he got into the driver’s seat that he could hear her music blasting through. He put the key into the ignition and turned the power on. He connected his old iPod and pressed play while they waited for their mum. The twins cheered eagerly from behind him and they started singing along to the song. They didn’t know all of the words, so it made for some pretty entertaining moments for Louis.

The front door banged shut and Louis looked up. Their mum made her way to the car and she stood outside, her hands on her hips and a pinched look of annoyance on her face. Louis shot her a grin through the windscreen of the car and she rolled her eyes dramatically at him. He swore he got all of his dramatics from her, there was no doubts about it.

“Louis,” she started as she climbed into the front passenger seat. “I thought I told you that I was driving?”

Louis grinned at her as she buckled herself up. “I thought I’d drive,” he said easily, starting the car. “This way, you get to rest before we get to the carnival.”

Jay rolled her eyes at him. “I see,” she said. “Fine, let’s go, we’re already late.”

“We’re not late,” Louis said, checking the rear view mirror for anything behind the car. “Everyone else is simply early.”

“You’ve been watching The Princess Dairies too much,” Jay commented as Louis put the car into reverse to back out of their driveway. 

“Can’t help it, it’s the twins’ favourite movie,” Louis replied with a grin.

Jay snorted. “Sure it is, Boo.” She patted his thigh twice and Louis huffed indignantly as they drove off. 

He turned onto the motorway at the first possible chance. The carnival was a few towns over, and had looked promising when Jay had told him about it a few weeks earlier. The girls had been excited and Louis knew that Felicite and Charlotte were excited, even if their expressions told him otherwise. He didn’t know what it was like being a teenage girl, with that amount of hormones coursing through his veins, but he had a fair idea since he was living in close quarters with them. 

There were constant fights over who was in the bathroom the longest, who got to have what for breakfast and who got to sit where in their lounge room but they were family and they loved each other, despite their constant bickering.

“Louis, take the next junction,” Jay said, interrupting Louis’ loud singing along with his music.

“Mum, that’s nowhere near where we’re supposed to leave from,” Louis commented. 

“Louis, don’t argue with me, just do as I say,” Jay said.

Louis glanced over at his mother who had a worried look on her face. He shook his head and kept his focus on the road and the traffic in front of them. He wasn’t sure why she wanted to exit off the motorway so quickly but he knew it was silly to. He missed the junction and Jay turned in her seat to face him.

“Louis!” she exclaimed. “I _told_ you to take the junction!” 

“Mum,” Louis protested. “We’re not anywhere close yet, it’d just waste more time.”

They bickered louder and louder as they argued the same points. The twins began to cry at the noise and Jay huffed at Louis. 

“Just take the next junction,” Jay demanded as she turned in her seat to pacify the twins. 

Louis kept an eye out for it, frowning when he couldn’t see one. A moment later, something hit their car and Louis lurched forwards in his seat. Panicked voices filled the car with everyone questioning what had happened. Louis’ eyes widened as he crashed into the back of a large lorry that had appeared out of nowhere. He felt his seatbelt digging into his chest and across his stomach. He wheezed as he turned his head to glance at his mum who had an airbag in her face. She pushed at it to get it away and her gaze locked with Louis’ for a moment before the car was engulfed with flames. He heard the explosion and the muffled screams of his sisters and his mother in his ears, his own cries mingling with their own before he blacked out, the heat from the fire warming him in a way that he never should have felt comforting.

\--- 

“I woke up a week later in hospital completely fine,” Louis finished. “Well, not completely. But I was alive and they weren’t. None of them were.” Harry’s hand felt numb in his own from squeezing it so hard. He didn’t look up at them. He couldn’t.

“Louis.”

A moment later, Louis had an armful of Niall who was crawling into his lap, clinging to Louis tightly. Hot tears dripped onto his neck and Louis ignored the way they rolled down the back of his shirt. He awkwardly patted Niall’s back, trying to soothe him. He had never seen Niall cry before and it wasn’t a sight that he ever wanted to witness again. He felt bad that he caused this, that he made the happiest person he had ever met cry. Guilt flooded Louis as Niall sobbed in his arms. He shouldn’t have said anything. 

“Fuck,” Niall whispered and he squeezed Louis tighter. “Shit, Lou.”

“Don’t,” Louis said, his voice thick with emotion. “It’s over…”

Niall grasped Louis’ face in his hands and forced Louis to look at him. “You’ve kept this a secret for so long already. You don’t need to anymore.”

“C-can you please go?” Louis asked, breaking out of Niall’s hold. “All of you. Please leave.”

He ducked his head, just catching Liam’s worried gaze. The bed slowly emptied but before everyone had left, Zayn crowded into his space. He didn’t say anything, he just stared at Louis for a long few moments, as if searching for something in Louis’ eyes. He had been crying as well, Louis realised, from the tears pooling in his eyes. Louis reached up and wiped at Zayn’s eyes with the sleeve of his jumper. 

“I’ll hear the rest when you’re ready,” Zayn whispered before he kissed the corner of Louis’ mouth. He walked away with Liam, shutting the door behind him.

Louis glanced over and saw Harry awkwardly shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “I didn’t know if you wanted me to leave too?” he asked, sounding far more timid than Louis had ever hoped to hear.

“You can stay,” Louis replied. “This is your room, too.”

“I don’t,” Harry paused. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“You don’t,” Louis replied quickly. “I just can’t deal with everyone looking at me like that. With such pity in their eyes. Why do you think I kept it a secret for so long?”

Harry re-joined him on the bed and took both of Louis’ hands in his own. “I don’t know why you kept it a secret in the first place,” he said softly. “You could have shared that with us and we all would have helped you get through it.”

Louis shook his head and pulled his hands out of Harry’s grasp. “Don’t you get it?” he started. “It’s my fault they died. I couldn’t protect them. It’s _my_ fault that I’m an orphan, that I have no family anymore. _It’s my fault_.”

Harry pulled Louis in close. “Lou, it _isn’t_ your fault,” he said urgently. “It isn’t. You didn’t know you had powers and that they kicked in to save you.”

“If I had known, though,” Louis started wetly. “If I _had_ known, then they’d still _be_ here. It’s… I saw my family die right in front of me, Harry, all of them. I have _no one_.”

“You have us,” Harry said. “We’re your family now. Whether you like it or not.”

Harry squeezed Louis closer, like if he held on tight enough, he could squeeze all of Louis’ worries right out of his chest. He pressed a kiss to Louis’ cheek and pulled back. His face was stained with tears, his eyes wet with unshed ones. 

“Haz…” he whispered. “I’m so sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” Harry assured him. “It took a lot of courage to tell that story after you’d kept it in for so long.” He ran his thumb over the mound of Louis’ cheekbones. “Do… Does it feel a little better, at least? To have shared that with us all?”

Louis wanted to tell him no, it didn’t, because he was still keeping something just as big inside, something equally terrible. “A little,” he whispered. 

“Good,” Harry said. His lips met Louis’ own and they kissed a few times. Louis could taste the salt from Harry’s tears on his lips before he pulled back. It was all too much. 

“I need to sleep,” Louis muttered, not meeting Harry’s gaze. 

“I’ll get you some water,” Harry said as he slipped off the bed. “You’ll need it.”

Louis settled under the covers and pulled them up to his chin. He felt insanely guilty that he hadn’t told Harry the story earlier, and for also keeping more things a secret from him. Louis was torn. He didn’t want Harry to treat him differently, to look at him like he was a fragile thing that was going to break at a moment’s notice. He didn’t want any of his friends looking at him like that. He had caught their looks of pity, of sadness before they had left, and he didn’t want to see that in their eyes ever again.

Harry came back to the bedroom a moment later and passed Louis the glass of water. He sat up to drink it and laid back down again. Harry climbed into his side of the bed and immediately slid closer. He wrapped his arms around Louis’ body and slipped a leg between Louis’ own.

“I don’t care, you know,” Harry started, catching Louis’ attention. “I don’t care that you felt the need to keep that from us, from me. I’m just… I’m happy you’ve told me now. That way I can share your pain and help you heal.”

“How are you so perfect?” Louis wondered. 

Harry ducked his head. “’M not perfect,” he muttered. 

“You are, though,” Louis whispered. He brushed Harry’s curls off his forehead and leaned forwards, capturing Harry’s lips in his own. “You’re my perfect Harry.” Harry flushed and kissed Louis again. 

The tension in Louis’ stomach eased as they kissed, one of Harry’s hand stroking his back. He may not be able to fix the past or even share everything just yet but right then, in Harry’s arms, Louis felt completely safe and he figured maybe one day he would be strong enough to take Harry’s advice and share everything with him. 

_One step at a time_ , his mind supplied as Harry curled around him, ready to drift off to sleep.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven  
 _Harry_  


“I don’t know what to do,” Harry admitted. He picked at a loose thread on the hoodie he was wearing. It was Louis’ hoodie. Or it was Harry’s. He wasn’t sure anymore. All of the clothes they owned they shared. Harry was too tall for Louis’ trousers these days but they still shared shirts, jumpers, hoodies and on the odd occasion, socks. They shared with the other boys as well but not nearly as often. Harry saw Louis wearing Zayn’s jumper once and he hadn’t really liked the flair of jealousy that had crept up his stomach. It was silly, he knew that it was, but it didn’t stop it from happening. Zayn was one hundred percent committed to Liam, that he did know. He wasn’t sure if Louis was there yet but Harry had been in love with him forever now and he wanted Louis to know it.

It felt like Louis had been pulling away from Harry lately. Harry kept his distance when it looked like Louis wanted space. They still interacted like they normally did but Harry felt like Louis maybe regretted telling him his secret. He could see it in Louis’ eyes sometimes. He could feel it when Louis held him when they drifted off to sleep. He could sense it when they kissed. Louis was pulling away from Harry, however subtle it was, however little it may be, Harry noticed. 

“You’re crazy if you think Louis doesn’t love you anymore,” Zayn said, turning to glance at Harry. “Babe, this one?” He held up a shirt in front of his chest. 

Liam smiled at him and nodded. “That one is perfect.”

Harry flopped back onto Zayn’s bed, his mind whirring with thoughts. It was hard to focus on his problems when Zayn and Liam were positively radiating happiness. It was hard to be concerned at all when he was around them. He loved them, he did, but he needed to talk about this rationally with someone before he convinced himself that Louis was breaking up with him.

Zayn pulled his t-shirt off over his head and slipped the button up shirt over his shoulders. “H,” he started. “I don’t know what else to suggest. You need to talk with Louis.”

“That’s the thing,” Harry said, curling around the pillow. “Every time I talk to him, he suddenly remembers that he has training, or he wants to go for a run. Or he pins me to the bed and we snog for half an hour.”

“Sounds alright to me,” Zayn replied with a shrug as he buttoned up the dark coloured shirt he was wearing. 

“Zayn,” Liam admonished, stepping in front of him. He slipped a tie around Zayn’s neck and tied it for him. “Harry, I think you need to get Louis to actually pay attention to you. You need to sit down and talk about this rationally. You’re in a relationship now and it’s important to share things.”

“I know,” Harry mumbled, watching his best friends get ready together. It was sweet, he thought, how in sync they were with each other. They moved wordlessly around the room, passing each other things that the other needed, making sure that they were properly dressed, with their clothes smoothed down perfectly. 

“When did you last go on a proper date?” Liam asked. “Like, not in the school?”

Harry shrugged. “A few weeks ago,” he replied. “Why?”

“Take him out,” Liam suggested. “Make a night of it. Go to T.G.I. Friday’s again and maybe go for a long walk after. Watch the sunset together and get ice cream. Tell him how much you love him still. Not that that is the issue, of course, but it’s always nice to hear.”

Harry bit his lip. “Umm…”

Liam paused in shrugging on his blazer. “You have told him you love him, right?” 

“Umm…” Harry repeated. 

“Christ, Haz,” Zayn said. “Maybe that’s what he’s waiting for? For you to say the L word?”

“But he knows I love him,” Harry protested. “We sleep together every night and I make him breakfast and bring him tea and we share food…”

Liam crossed the room and sat down on the bed in front of Harry. “Make it romantic,” he started, “tell him everything. How he makes you feel, that you’re worried about him after he told you how his family died. Make sure he _knows ___you are there for him unconditionally.”

“Have you met Lou?” Harry asked. “He’s not the mushy type.”

“He’s a lot more mushy than his bravado lets up,” Zayn added, coming to stand behind Liam. “Babe, we have to go or we’re going to be late.”

Liam looked at the watch on his left wrist. “Shit, you’re right.” He stood and hastily grabbed his phone off charge. “Harry. You’ll do great. Just go with your instincts.”

“Where are you two going anyway all dressed up like that?” Harry asked, nodding towards their outfits of pressed slacks and button up shirts. 

“I’m meeting Liam’s parents for the first time,” Zayn replied.

“But you’ve met them already,” Harry said, confused. 

“Not as his boyfriend, I haven’t,” Zayn said. Harry felt nerves coming off Zayn and he shot him a sympathetic glance. 

“Text if you need us, okay?” Liam offered, patting Harry’s thigh comfortingly. 

“But don’t, because we’re going to be busy all night,” Zayn added. “Annoy Niall and Ashley, I’m sure they’ll listen to you.”

“They’re out for the night, too,” Harry said with a pout.

“You’ll be fine,” Liam said. “Louis isn’t _that_ scary.”

They both kissed his cheek and left Harry sitting on Zayn’s bed. Harry stayed there for a little while longer. He flicked through his phone, seeing no new activity. He didn’t feel like playing Angry Birds right then. He glanced at the time on his phone and sighed. He and Louis were the only ones out of their group left in the mansion. He knew it would be odd if he and Louis didn’t spend some time together. He just didn’t want it to be awkward between them. He wanted to tell Louis how deeply he felt for him but he didn’t want it to seem like it came from worry. He wanted the moment to be perfect. Louis deserved no less, he thought.

He closed the door to Liam and Zayn’s room behind him and headed for his own room. He frowned when he felt a burst of excitement coming from the door and he pushed it open, curious. He glanced over at Louis’ bed to find Louis sitting there, smiling brightly. It took a moment for him to register the head of long, dark hair that was sitting opposite Louis. 

“Gemma!” Harry exclaimed excitedly. 

Gemma turned around and beamed at him. She got up off the bed and bounded over to him, throwing her arms around Harry in a tight hug. He buried his face in her shoulder and inhaled deeply, letting the scent of his family home and Gemma’s perfume wash over him. 

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

“Thought I’d give my baby brother a surprise,” Gemma said as they pulled back.

“Gem’s staying for the weekend!” Louis said from the bed. 

Harry grinned and hugged her again. “That’s great.”

“I’m sick of wedding details,” Gemma said as she sat down on Louis’ bed. Harry carefully perched on the edge and immediately leaned into Louis the moment Louis’ arm went around him. He relaxed into Louis’ embrace, feeling like everything was slotting into place once more when Louis held him. “Look at you two. Proper couple, aren’t you?”

Harry ducked his head, grinning. “Yeah,” he said.

“It’s true,” Louis added. “Can’t keep this one away from me, even if I wanted to.” 

Harry turned his head to look up and Louis and he grinned when Louis kissed him softly on the lips.

“Alright, alright,” Gemma said. “I don’t need a front row seat to watching you snog my baby brother.”

“You’re the one who decided to come for a visit,” Louis quipped. “This is what we do _every_ day.”

“It’s true,” Harry agreed, lacing his fingers through Louis’ that were resting on his stomach. “We just snuggle _all_ the time.”

Gemma rolled her eyes and threw herself between the two of them, wriggling until she was completely between them. Harry poked at her side hard and she swatted at him. 

“Louis, when are you going to tell Harry of your undying love for me?” Gemma said once she was settled.

Louis sighed very heavily and very dramatically. “Harold,” he started. “I do apologise. I have fallen in love with your sister. It is true. We are set to wed in the Spring.” He put the back of his hand to his forehead and flopped back on the bed. 

Harry gasped. “How _could_ you? With my _own sister_!” he sat up and leaned over Gemma, who was smiling brightly. “Lewis, I cannot forgive you for this!” He pushed Louis and Louis fell off the bed. He landed on the floor with a thump and a groan. Harry leaned over the edge of the bed and shot him a sheepish look. “Sorry.”

“You will be,” Louis said. He quickly tugged Harry off the bed and Harry landed on the floor on top of Louis, his knees thumping into the ground. He groaned and winced. 

“That hurt,” he said. 

Louis patted his shoulder and Harry dipped his head forwards, completely forgetting that his sister was there, as he pressed a kiss into Louis’ lips. Louis responded immediately, tilting his head slightly so they could kiss better.

“You two are very boring,” Gemma said a moment later. “Louis, I am going to have to break up with you.”

Harry pulled back from the kiss and turned his head to look at Gemma, who was leaning over the bed to look at them, a bored expression on her face. Louis grinned at her. “Oh, good,” he started. “I was dreading telling you that I like boys, not girls.”

Gemma grinned back at him and reached over the bed to thump him playfully in the shoulder. “C’mon, get up,” she said. “We should have dinner. I’m hungry. And I drove _all_ this way.”

“You drove?” Harry asked, getting up off the floor. He held out a hand for Louis to take and Louis hoisted himself up. Harry immediately slipped his arm around Louis’ middle to steady him. 

“Drove, took the train, same thing,” Gemma said with a wave of her hand. “Either way, I’m still tired and hungry and you should feed me before I fall asleep.”

“I can make tacos,” Harry suggested and both Louis and Gemma nodded eagerly. “C’mon, then. It won’t take long.”

“But I’m _tired_ , Harry,” Gemma said pouting at him. 

“You can sleep in my bed,” Harry offered. “Lou and I always sleep together anyway.”

Gemma raised her eyebrows at him. “ _Really_?”

Harry felt his cheeks heating up at the comment. “Umm…”

“We do,” Louis interjected. “Harry’s a snuggler and I’m great to snuggle. It’s a win-win situation.”

“You two are disgustingly cute,” Gemma said, throwing a pillow at them. “Louis, you should snuggle with me while Harry makes tea.”

Louis shot Harry a look and he shrugged. “You’re better out of my kitchen anyway.”

“Hey!” Louis protested, poking Harry in the dimple in his cheek. 

Harry grinned. “I’ll come get you both soon when tea is ready,” he said. He kissed Louis soundly on the lips before leaving the bedroom, excitement bubbling inside of him at the prospect of his sister staying for the weekend. He hadn’t seen her since Louis had met her for the first time. He had to settle for Skype video calls whenever one of them had a free night. He missed her a lot. 

Dinner was quick and easy to prepare and Harry worked around the kitchen with practiced ease. He put ingredients into bowls and set them on the kitchen table so they could add their own fillings to their tacos. Once he had everything set up, he went back to his bedroom to see Louis and Gemma curled together on his bed, Gemma showing Louis something that was in her phone. He would be lying if a spark of jealousy didn’t run through him but he knew it was a silly idea to entertain.

“Food’s ready,” he said. 

They both looked up, wearing matching grins. 

“Harold,” Louis started slowly as he got up off the bed. “You never told me what a cute baby you were.”

Harry immediately turned to Gemma and he fixed her with a look. “Gem…”

Gemma gave him an innocent smile and flipped her long, dark hair off her shoulder. “You were a cutie,” she started. “Don’t know what happened though. Such a pity.” She threw a wink at Louis and left the room. 

Louis stepped closer and pressed up into Harry’s personal space. “You’re much fitter now,” he said. “Which is _very_ good.”

Harry felt his cheeks heat up and he dipped his head to kiss Louis softly on the lips. “C’mon, dinner’s ready.” 

He took Louis’ hand in his own and led him to the kitchen where Gemma was already piling her first taco high with toppings. She licked her fingers and carried on, making Harry grimace at her. 

“Shut up,” Gemma said before Harry could say anything. “I’m a uni student now, this is how we eat.”

Harry sat down at the table and grabbed a taco shell. “I didn’t say anything.”

“Mmm, but I know that look, H,” Gemma pointed out. 

Harry ignored her and filled his first taco shell. Before he was able to take the first bite, Louis snatched the taco out of his hand and gave him a beaming smile and a wink, biting into it himself. 

“Mmm, this is good, Harry, thanks!” Louis said happily.

Harry pouted at him. “That was mine,” he said sadly. 

“Aww, baby,” Louis cooed. He passed the taco back to Harry. “Here, you have it.” Harry bit his lip and passed it back to Louis.

“No, it’s okay, you have it,” he said. 

“You two are weird,” Gemma said from across the table. “Just make another taco, Harry.”

Harry poked his tongue out at her and picked up another taco shell to fill up. Louis was still eating his first taco, so Harry deemed it safe enough to eat on his own. It tasted amazing, Harry thought as he ate his taco. He loved to cook and tacos were simple, quick and fun to make. He listened as Gemma spoke about their mother’s wedding preparations at length and how she was ready to tear her hair out if she had to worry about another detail. Their mother didn’t want an overly lavish wedding but Harry could tell from Gemma’s stories that it was turning out that way. With each day a new problem arose and their stress levels rose with it. 

“You’re lucky you’re all the way out here, H,” Gemma said as she polished off her second taco. “Do you want to trade?”

“You’d be a bit out of place in power training,” Harry replied, licking his lips of the sauce that had landed there. “The simulation robots would probably knock you out in the first thirty seconds.”

“Unlike you, I don’t need superpowers,” Gemma quipped. “I could just destroy it with my natural charms.”

Harry and Louis grinned at her and Gemma huffed indignantly. “Sure, Gem.”

“We should show Gem the training rooms sometime this weekend. She can see us five in action,” Louis suggested. 

“Yeah,” Harry agreed. “You can watch from where Nick normally does.”

“Yeah, sure, that’d be cool,” Gemma replied. 

“Do you want another taco, Lou?” Harry asked, glancing over at his boyfriend who was clutching his glass of water rather tightly. Harry frowned and wished not for the first time that he could tell what Louis was feeling.

“No, I…” Louis looked up at them. “I think I might go for a bit of a run.”

“…Okay,” Harry said. “Isn’t it a bit too soon after you’ve eaten, though?”

“I’ll be fine,” he replied. “Plus, you and Gemma need to spend some time together without me butting in.”

Harry opened his mouth to protest but Louis swooped in and kissed him quickly. He told them he’d see them after and disappeared from the room.

“That was odd,” Gemma commented after a few long moments of silence. 

“Yeah,” Harry agreed. “It was.”

They fell silent and Harry slowly ate a third taco, his mind wandering all over the place. He sighed and felt Gemma’s foot tap his underneath the table.

“Bond with me, little bro,” Gemma said easily.

Harry bit his lip. “After I’ve done the dishes.”

“The dishes can wait,” Gemma replied. “I’ll do them after, come talk to me, you look like you need it.”

Harry shot the pile of dirty dishes a longing look before Gemma grabbed his hand and dragged them off to Harry’s bedroom once more. Harry automatically crossed the room to Louis’ bed and made himself comfortable, pulling the throw blanket that Louis had at the end of the bed over himself. Gemma reached for the corner and tugged on it until it was covering her as well.

“Blanket hog,” she commented without malice. She bumped his shoulder with her own and settled against the pillows a little better. “Now, spill.”

Harry clasped his hands in front of himself and shrugged. “I don’t know where to start, really.”

“Wherever you want, Harry,” she replied. “C’mon, this is what big sisters are for. I’m the smart one, after all.”

“Hey,” Harry protested weakly. He sighed and glanced at the door before he turned to face her a little more and dropped his voice to a quieter tone. “Last week Lou told us that his entire family died.”

Gemma gasped and her eyes widened. “Wasn’t expecting that,” she said after a few long moments of silence. She nodded at Harry and put a hand on his arm. “Keep going.”

“I… I think something happened before that,” Harry said slowly, “but we’ve all been ill lately, so I can’t be sure.”

Gemma frowned. “What did you feel?” 

“Guilt mostly,” Harry replied, closing his eyes so he could try and remember what he felt from Louis the times he had been positive that Louis’ shield on his mind hadn’t been there. He hadn’t been sure at first, because it was something that had never happened but he and Louis were the only ones in their bedroom and Louis had been on the verge of sleep when Harry had felt it. It had overwhelmed him because he had no idea what had happened but the moment he registered what it was, the shield was back in place. It had only been a momentary thing but the second Louis’ attention was back on Harry, the feelings had disappeared completely. It was scary to feel something that Louis was feeling after spending all year without that knowledge or insight like he had with the other boys. 

“What else?” Gemma pressed. 

Harry shook his head. “I’m not sure,” he said. “The guilt kind of overshadowed everything else.”

“Does he feel guilty for the deaths of his family?” Gemma asked.

“Yeah, he does,” Harry replied. “I think that’s all it is – he kept that to himself for so long and I… I wish I could help.”

“But you do,” Gemma said softly, tangling her hand in Harry’s hair and scratching at the scalp. Her nails were longer than Louis’ were but she used to do this to him as a kid and she knew exactly where to scratch to make him feel better. “You’re such a kitten, Harry.”

Harry hummed. “Shh, keep scratching,” he said. “It’s nice.”

“Anyone can see that he’s hopelessly in love with you, you know,” Gemma said after a while. Harry hummed at her in response. “Mum’s going to love him.”

Harry smiled to himself. “Yeah, she is,” he agreed. “I miss her a lot.”

“You should come home soon, H,” Gemma said. “Save me from wedding preparations and all that.”

“Maybe,” Harry replied. “School’s almost over for the year, so there’s not really a lot of time to leave, especially with exams coming up.”

“You should still come back home,” Gemma said. “Bring Louis and he can meet mum before the wedding.”

Harry relaxed under Gemma’s touch and he listened to her talk. It was soothing and something he sorely missed. She was right, though, he needed to go back home more. It was harder before when he couldn’t drive but now that Louis had taught him how, he didn’t have much of an excuse. He did need his proper licence, though, but he knew Louis would drive them if he asked him to. After Louis had shared his secret, though, Harry hadn’t wanted to ask him. He didn’t want it to be a kick in the face of ‘oh, your family died? Here, come meet mine instead’ because Louis deserved better than that.

He must have dozed off because when he opened his eyes again, Louis was there, his head in Gemma’s lap and her hands in his hair. She was twisting at it and putting clips in it wherever she saw fit. It made Harry smile. 

“Looks good,” he said, voice thick from disuse. 

Louis and Gemma both turned to him, wearing matching smiles. “Thank you,” they said in unison. Louis laughed and held up a hand to be high fived by Gemma, who did so willingly. 

“We should play Mario Kart,” Louis said. “While Niall, Liam and Zayn aren’t here to hog the controllers.”

“Yeah, alright,” Harry agreed. 

Louis shook out his hair and gave the clips back to Gemma who put them back with her belongings. Harry reached for Louis’ hand and squeezed it gently. Louis gave him a small smile and cuddled in close to Harry’s side.

“How was your run?” Harry wondered.

“It was good,” Louis replied. “Just what I needed.”

“Good.” 

They left the bedroom, shutting the door firmly behind them, and headed down to one of the common rooms. Harry switched on the console and sat between Louis and Gemma on the three seater couch. Harry selected Mario as his player and Louis chose Luigi like they always did. Gemma, unsurprisingly, settled on Princess Peach and they started their first race. Harry kept his gaze on the television screen and Mario as they raced. 

Surprisingly, Gemma won the first round. She cheered loudly and Louis quickly requested a re-match. Gemma agreed and they all sat down again, yelling at the screen and each other’s players when they got in the way. Gemma threw a comment Harry’s way about the bananas and Harry laughed so hard he fell of the couch. Louis patted his head and came in first mere seconds before Gemma. Harry came in last and grinned when Louis kissed him on the lips and told him he did well. 

Harry got up off the floor and settled into the couch again and they played another round where Gemma won once more, much to Louis’ chagrin. 

“I just have skill,” Gemma said, her tone laced with superiority. Harry wasn’t fussed either way but Louis was quite competitive. 

They played for a few more rounds, Harry winning one of them, which surprised all of them. Gemma ended up winning another one and danced around the common room happily. Gemma pulled Harry and Louis up by their hands and made them dance with her. Louis, being as cheeky as ever, pulled Gemma close so they could do a ridiculous waltz together. Harry put on some music and grinned as they all danced out of sync with it, moving ridiculously around the common room, and laughing at each other when they did a particularly strange looking dance move. 

A while later, Niall wandered into the common room with Ashley and they joined in on the ridiculous dancing. Harry managed to get Louis’ attention and pulled him close. Louis smiled up at him as Harry wrapped his arms around Louis’ middle and they swayed on the spot, not really dancing as such, more just holding each other and rocking from side to side. Harry didn’t mind it, though. He liked having Louis close to him. Louis rested his head on Harry’s shoulder, his nose tucked into the dip of Harry’s neck. Harry could feel Louis’ breath puffing across his skin. It was comforting, Harry thought. He closed his eyes and just relaxed into their embrace, shuffling slowly in a circle with Louis. 

“C’mon, Tommo, I want to dance!” Niall said breaking them apart. Harry pouted as Louis was taken away from him. Louis shot him an apologetic look before he was tugged out of Harry’s line of sight.

“Hey, little brother,” Gemma said as she approached him a few moments later. “Dance with me.”

Harry laughed as Gemma grabbed his hand and twirled him. He mentally forgave Niall for stealing Louis from him to dance with as Gemma managed to dip him. She almost dropped him on the floor and Harry laughed again, righting himself, even though he was a little wobbly on his feet. 

Ashley stole Gemma away a few minutes later and Harry ended up with an armful of Niall who demanded that he be held as they slow danced. Harry patted the top of Niall’s head and wrapped his arms around Niall’s middle. He caught Louis’ gaze across the room and grinned when he saw Louis smiling fondly at them. 

“Sorry, Nialler,” Harry said. “I want to dance with my boyfriend now.”

Niall shrugged and twirled away from them, dancing to the beat of the music as Harry crossed the room to offer Louis his hand. Louis laughed and pulled Harry close again. Instead of slow dancing this time, Louis turned himself in Harry’s arms so his back was pressed against Harry’s chest. Harry swallowed thickly and wrapped his arms around Louis once more. Louis’ hand made its way into Harry’s hair as they started moving together, probably a lot more dirty than Louis intended but Harry was too far gone to care. Louis’ body was perfect against his own, moving slowly at first until they found a rhythm. Harry dipped his head and dropped kisses along the side of Louis’ neck, pausing to suck at the hot skin every so often. Louis’ arse pushed back against his crotch and Harry bit back a moan, digging his fingers into Louis’ hips where they rested. Louis turned his head and captured Harry’s lips in a kiss. The angle was awkward at first but Louis loosened his hold on Harry’s hair and turned in his arms so they were kissing properly. Harry moaned when Louis nipped at his tongue, drawing it into his own mouth. 

“Tell me I’m not sharing a room with that?” Gemma’s voice rang out.

Dazed, Harry pulled back from kissing Louis to look at his sister. He blinked until she came into focus, one of her perfectly shaped eyebrows raised in their direction.

“You can always share with Niall,” Louis replied. “I’m sure he won’t mind.”

“Lou,” Niall said pointedly. 

Harry licked his lips and coughed awkwardly. “Maybe we should go to bed.” He knew that Niall would want to spend the night alone with Ashley, especially if their date had gone well. 

“Yeah, I’m beat,” Gemma said, switching the music off. They all headed up to their floor and parted at Harry and Louis’ room. Louis headed off to the bathrooms and Harry grabbed pyjamas to change into. He set them down on Louis’ bed so he could give Gemma space. 

They both changed and climbed into their beds, Gemma on the other side of the room.

“Maybe _I_ should be the one sharing with Louis after that display downstairs,” Gemma said.

“Gem.” Harry shook his head twice and she rolled her eyes. “It’s not like that.”

Gemma gave him a pointed look. “Sure.”

“It isn’t,” Harry insisted. “We haven’t had sex at all.”

“Oh,” Gemma said, surprised. “It kind of seemed like you had.”

“Not yet,” Harry replied. “We’re waiting.”

“I don’t know what for,” Gemma started. “It looks like you’re both ready. Though, please don’t have sex when I’m in the room, that’s just rude.”

“What’s rude?” Louis asked as he wandered into the room a moment later. He closed the door behind him and crossed the room to where Harry was already in Louis’ bed.

“Gemma’s face is,” Harry quipped, causing her to stick her middle finger up at him. Harry laughed and called out an obnoxiously loud good night to her.

She rolled onto her side, facing away from them and pulled the blankets up high. Louis climbed into the bed next to Harry and switched off the lights. 

“Hi,” he said as he settled in closer. 

“Put your force field up,” Harry said. “So Gemma can’t hear us.”

Louis nodded and a bubble like force field suddenly surrounded them, shimmering before turning completely invisible like Harry was used to.

“Is this going to get sexy?” Louis asked. “Because it feels like it’s going to get sexy.”

Harry grinned. “It would but Gemma asked us not to.”

Louis pouted and Harry dipped his head so he could kiss the pout away. He shuffled on the bed so they were both lying on their sides, facing each other. One of Harry’s hands settled on Louis hip while the other propped up his head. He grinned at Louis and stroked soothing circles with his thumb on the skin that was barely showing between Louis’ pyjama bottoms and the loose shirt he was wearing.

“You know,” Harry started. “I don’t like that you’re wearing a shirt just because Gemma is here.”

“I figured it’d be too much for her to handle if I walked around shirtless,” Louis replied a little breathily. Harry leaned forwards and kissed Louis on the lips again. “I mean, it’s just unfair to do that to the poor girl. She can’t have all of this and just teasing her like that would be wrong.”

“I love you,” Harry said with a smile.

“Well, of course you do,” Louis replied, giving Harry a pointed look. “We _were_ just talking about my perfect physique, it would be hard for you not to.”

“ _Lou_ ,” Harry said, a small pout forming on his lips.

Louis’ gaze went soft and he reached up a hand to tangle in Harry’s hair. “I love you too.” He pulled Harry closer and kissed him lovingly. Harry quickly responded, shifting with Louis on the bed until he was hovering over his boyfriend. Their kisses were long and slow, and they made Harry’s toes curl with happiness. He settled over Louis, one leg between Louis’ own, bracing himself on one of his forearms. Louis let out a soft whine that went straight to Harry’s stomach. He pulled back enough to trail kisses down Louis’ neck, stopping every so often to make the marks darker that he had left on Louis’ neck earlier when they were dancing. Louis’ breathing grew heavy above him and Harry tugged the collar of Louis’ shirt aside so he could kiss there too, his teeth scraping across his collarbone. 

The fingers in his hair gripped a little tighter when Harry found a particularly sensitive spot. He quickly repeated the action and relished in the way Louis reacted. 

“Kiss me,” Louis breathed. “Please.”

Harry shifted again until they were kissing again. Harry moaned when Louis’s tongue slipped into his mouth, sliding against Harry’s own. He could feel his entire body growing warmer with every touch from Louis. Louis’ hand slid down Harry’s back and scratched back up with enough pressure to make Harry arch into the touch. Louis’ hands scrambled for the hem of Harry’s t-shirt and he tugged at it until it was bunched around Harry’s armpits. Harry pulled back enough to take it off and throw it to the floor. Louis’ hands immediately touched Harry’s chest, tracing random patterns all over him. 

Louis whined when Harry moved. He pushed Louis’ shirt up his stomach and dropped kisses to the tanned skin underneath, slowly working his way up Louis’ side. Louis squirmed a little as Harry’s tongue came out to trace the dips between his ribs but he settled down when Harry pressed a sucking kiss into the soft flesh, grazing at it with his teeth.

“You know, I may not be able to _hear_ you but I can still _see_ you.”

Harry pulled back and glanced over his shoulder at Gemma who was sitting up in bed, her arms across her chest. 

“And it’s kind of noticeable when your brother sits up and takes his shirt off in front of you,” she added.

Louis bit his lip and Harry could tell he was trying not to smile. Harry moved on the bed so he was sitting next to Louis instead.

“You’d think you’d be used to his nakedness by now,” Louis said and Gemma threw her hands up in the air. 

“I thought you said you weren’t going to have sex?” Gemma asked.

“We’re not,” Harry replied quickly. 

“Yeah, we were just saying good night,” Louis added. Harry burst out laughing and flopped back against the pillows. 

“Some good night,” Gemma replied. 

“Night, Gem,” Harry called out to her. She waved him off and settled back into the covers.

Louis’ grin was bright, even in the mostly dark room. He settled on his side and placed a hand on Harry’s stomach, his fingertips stroking slowly across Harry’s skin. “Night, Harry.”

“Night, Lou,” Harry returned. He sat up enough to give Louis one more kiss and lay back down. Louis curled around him and dropped a kiss to his shoulder. “I love you.” Harry could feel Louis smiling against his skin.

“I love you too.”

~*~  
 _Louis_  


Since The Incident, as Louis had been referring to it in his mind, he had successfully managed to avoid Nick for the majority of time. Lessons were harder to avoid but Louis did his best to get out of them, or to ignore Nick completely. Louis had spent the majority of his time trying to make peace with his own mind over what happened and it was proving harder than he initially thought it would. He wasn’t sure how to make peace with something that terrible. Even though he wasn’t the one who had committed the act, he still witnessed it and had done nothing about it. It still haunted him every day and Louis struggled to deal with that. He tried, though, he tried his hardest and he would continue doing so because he didn’t know how he was going to function, otherwise.

Gemma visiting had been a wonderful distraction from his thoughts. She had stayed the entire weekend and it made Harry happy, which, of course, made Louis happy. Louis was quite fond of her, as well. She was a smart girl who was also quite quick witted and Louis loved that. The more time he spent with Gemma, the more he liked her. He figured it was a good thing, since she was Harry’s family and she was really important to Harry. Every time Harry had seen them spending some alone time together, he would get this overly fond look on his face and whenever Louis caught him, he pretended he wasn’t looking but Louis knew differently. Louis figured it was a good stepping stone towards meeting Harry’s mum and her fiancé, Robin. He knew it was going to be scary meeting Harry’s family, and that if his own were alive, he’d be nervous about them meeting Harry, if only for the fact that he wanted them to like Harry as much as he did. Harry talked about his family a lot and he knew that it was important for Louis to meet them. He wanted to make a good impression, to show them how in love with Harry he was. He just hoped they liked him. Gemma had reassured Louis that their family would like him because _she_ liked him and they all had similar tastes. It relieved Louis a little but he was still nervous.

With the distraction of Gemma, and the distraction of Harry’s lips, Louis felt like he was coping with everything better than he expected to. It still lingered in the front of his mind but he had managed to form some kind of semblance for normal day to day life functionality. It made Zayn stop looking at him like he was waiting for Louis to break as well, which was a bonus in Louis’ mind. He didn’t like the looks that Zayn gave him, like he was going to break at any moment. He wasn’t going to – he could cope well enough, or at least hide it enough from the others. He didn’t care how long he had to keep it hidden, if it protected the others, then he would keep it hidden from them for however long he could. Which is why he had been avoiding Nick as much as possible.

Luck, however, was not on Louis’ side, it seemed. Nick and his smirking face crept up in the most unlikely of places. Unfortunately, being in a boarding school, even in a mansion as big as the one they were in, couldn’t keep Nick hidden from Louis forever. Their first few encounters had been terse and they had left Louis feeling weak, his stomach rolling, and sweat on his forehead. Since then, he had managed to school his emotions somewhat when it came to seeing Nick in person. He couldn’t let Nick know how much he got to him; it wasn’t good for his psyche at all. 

It was inevitable that Nick would catch Louis on his own at some point, no matter how careful Louis was. While he had managed to get some kind of semblance of control over his powers again, he couldn’t hold the concentration as well as he used to be able to. His invisibility was irregular and even when he concentrated hard enough, he could only hold it for a minute or two at most. Even then, he was exhausted afterwards. 

Seeing Nick made Louis nervous. He never knew what to expect from him and it unnerved him. He figured that Nick knew this and he played on it whenever he saw Louis. If his smirk was anything to go by, Louis knew that he was right – Nick enjoyed watching him squirm. 

“I have another day of errands,” Nick said coolly. He slipped his phone back into his pocket and leaned against the railing of the stairs to the mansion’s entrance after Louis had just finished his run. He fixed Louis with a stare that made Louis’ skin crawl. 

“Well, have fun then,” Louis said as he tried to walk passed Nick. Nick’s hand shot out and his fingers curled around Louis’ wrist a little too tightly to be considered anything casual. 

“You misunderstand, Louis,” Nick started. Louis turned to face him properly. Nick didn’t let go of his wrist. “You’re coming with me.”

Louis swallowed thickly. “No. My powers aren’t up for it and I don’t want to.”

“It’s not up for negotiation,” Nick replied. “We leave in half an hour. You have enough time to shower and then meet me back here.”

“Or _what_?” Louis hissed. “You’ll turn me in for a murder I didn’t commit?”

Nick smiled. “Darling,” he said patronisingly. “I hoped it wouldn’t come to this.”

Louis gave Nick a hesitant look as Nick pulled a silver pen out of his blazer pocket. He clicked the top and instantly a loud noise filled Louis’ mind. He wrenched his hand free from Nick’s grasp and clapped his hands over his ears, trying to block out the sound. It was no use, though. He could hear the sound even through his hands. Nick smiled and clicked the top again. The noise dissipated and Louis panted, doubled over. He could still hear the sharp ringing and he looked to Nick who looked all too pleased with himself. 

“That should do it,” Nick said.

“Do what?” Louis asked.

“Go have a shower, Louis,” Nick said. “Then come and meet me back down here. You have thirty minutes.”

Louis shook his head and blinked before he left Nick alone. He headed straight for the lifts and rode them up to his floor. He showered quickly and dressed in fresh clothes. It all felt automatic to Louis, like he had no choice but to shower, dress and meet Nick downstairs. It was strange but Louis knew he needed to just carry on.

“Hey,” Harry said brightly as he wandered into their room just before Louis was about to leave. He had five minutes left to meet Nick and he didn’t want to be late.

“Hi,” Louis returned, heading for the door.

“Where are you going?” Harry asked. “I thought we were going to do something together today?”

Louis shrugged. “Nick wants me to do some errands with him,” he replied, feeling oddly emotionless about it all.

Harry frowned and closed the distance between them. He put his hand to Louis’ forehead and waited. “Are you ill?” he asked. 

“Of course not,” Louis replied. He pushed Harry’s hand off his forehead and ignored the hurt look that crossed Harry’s features. “I have to go.”

“Okay,” Harry said. “I love you.”

“Yeah, me too,” Louis returned before he left the room, the door closing behind him. He made it back down to Nick with barely a moment to spare and Nick looked at him like Louis had just made all of his dreams come true.

“Let’s go then, Louis,” Nick said. “We’ve got a big day ahead of us!”

Wordlessly, Louis followed Nick to the garage and got into the car. He automatically fastened his seatbelt and kept his gaze forwards as Nick drove. Throughout the drive, Louis couldn’t help but think that something was wrong. Nick was far too cheerful and the last time that Louis had been alone with Nick, a guy had been killed. Louis didn’t want that to happen again. He didn’t know if he could cope with that happening again. 

Their drive was longer than the last one. Louis felt trepidation creep through his veins as the journey continued. In the back of his mind, he could feel something, something that wasn’t supposed to be there. Like someone prodding away at his mind. He shook it off, the thought was silly. Louis knew that no one could get into his mind thanks to the shield he constantly had protecting it. With that thought to comfort him, Louis closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, willing their outing to end as soon as possible.

The car eventually came to a stop and Louis glanced around at his surroundings. They were parked in a very busy looking street. Louis figured they were closer to London than he thought they would be. The drive hadn’t felt that long but he must have fallen asleep or something to explain how they were there so quickly.

“Right,” Nick said, breaking Louis’ thoughts. “I need you to completely focus, okay?”

Louis glanced at Nick and bit back what he wanted to say. “What do you want me to do?” he found himself asking.

Nick grinned widely. “Drink up, Louis,” he said, pushing a can of energy drink into Louis’ hand. He cracked the top for Louis and nodded at him. Louis sighed and drank the entire can in one hit. It felt wrong as it slid down his throat. It tasted disgusting and Louis wanted to gag. He kept it down, though. Nick’s hand was on the back of his neck a moment later, massaging slow circles into his skin. If it was meant to be comforting, it wasn’t, it made Louis feel even more ill than he had before.

“Don’t…” Louis started, slurring a little. He looked over at Nick who just added a little more pressure to his neck.

“There we go,” Nick said a moment later. “Now. I need you to keep your concentration up, okay? I need you to keep me invisible _and_ shielded until I get back into this car, okay?”

Louis nodded against his own will. “I…”

“Shh, no talking,” Nick said, increasing the pressure on Louis’ neck. “This shouldn’t take long but I need you to keep all of your energy on this task. Nothing can go wrong, okay? Just keep concentrating and we’ll be fine.”

Louis closed his eyes and nodded again. He could hear Nick’s voice swirling around in his mind, repeating over and over what he had just said. Louis opened his eyes again and focused on turning Nick invisible. He felt Nick’s hand graze across his cheek before the car door opened and then closed again quickly. He focused his entire attention on keeping Nick invisible and shielded. It was hard. Louis wasn’t used to this kind of concentration again. It was draining and he just hoped that Nick would be quick.

He didn’t understand why he was complying with Nick, though. Rationally, he knew that he shouldn’t be, that there was no reason for him to be protecting Nick, especially when he had abused Louis’ powers for his own gain. It was confusing and Louis’ mind throbbed from over thinking. He took deep breaths and closed his eyes, trying to keep his concentration fixed. If he couldn’t see, then nothing bad could happen, right? 

A loud noise forced Louis to snap his eyes open and he glanced around at people scurrying across the road. The urge to get out and see what was going on was strong but something kept Louis back. He felt as though he couldn’t physically move from the spot. He could hear Nick’s voice in his head telling him to stay put, that it was important that Louis stay in the car and he realised that Nick’s voice was right. There was no use in putting himself in harm’s way, especially when he needed to protect Nick.

Moments later, the car door opened again and Nick’s voice filled the space between them, telling Louis that he could turn Nick visible again but to keep the bag he was holding invisible. Louis did so without protest. He heard the thump of the invisible bag hitting the backseat and a moment later, Nick was pulling away from the kerb and driving away like nothing had even happened. 

Louis’ concentration broke five minutes into the journey and he glanced into the backseat where a large black bag was sitting, almost completely zipped up. Louis’ eyes widened as he reached back and tugged the bag open a little more, revealing bundles and bundles of fifty pound notes. He rummaged around in the bag, only to see there was nothing but fifty pound notes sitting there. Louis felt a hand on his shoulder and the car pulled over a second later. Nick fixed him with a gaze and Louis felt his mind going blank. He blinked and turned back to face the front of the car. He wondered what had just happened but didn’t question it as it didn’t feel important. 

“You should sleep, Louis,” Nick said a moment later. “You look like you need it.”

Louis nodded. “You’re right,” he agreed. “Can you wake me when we get back to the school?”

“Of course,” Nick said. He patted Louis’ thigh and pulled the car back onto the road. Louis closed his eyes and let himself drift off to sleep under Nick’s instruction. He didn’t understand what had gone on but he had a headache and Nick was right, he needed the rest. 

A hand shook him awake a while later and Louis blinked up at Nick. He frowned and straightened himself so he was pressed against the car door. “What’s going on?” he asked. His voice sounded panicked and had a worried edge to it. Louis didn’t like it.

From where he was sitting, he could see the open bag in the backseat, the bundles of money poking up like they wanted Louis to see them. He turned to face Nick who had disappeared. Louis felt the car door open behind him and he felt his body falling. He thankfully still had his seatbelt on, which saved him from toppling out of the car altogether. 

Nick fixed him with a look and Louis hastily clicked the button to release the belt. He got out of the car and stood next to it. Nick’s hand came to his neck again in a movement that was sickeningly familiar. He took a deep breath and winced when Nick pressed down on the pulse point on his neck.

“What…?” Louis started but Nick shook his head. 

“Shh,” he said. “You’re a little frazzled, darling.”

Louis blinked. Nick was right. He did feel a little frazzled. He tried to relax as best as he could.

“There we go,” Nick said. “Now. Whenever anyone asks what we did today, we did some training, okay?” Louis nodded twice. “Good. And you were great today.” Nick sounded proud. It made Louis want to throw up. “Best of all, and are you ready for this, darling?”

Louis winced at the nickname. It sounded wrong coming from Nick. It made his insides crawl and he felt completely dirty from it. “What?” he asked even though he didn’t want to.

“The best part,” Nick repeated, smiling widely, “is that you’re going to _forget_ this ever happened. Isn’t that great?”

“What?” Louis frowned. “How…?”

“Shh,” Nick said. He put a finger to Louis’ lips before moving so both of his hands were cupped around Louis’ neck. The hold would have been intimate if it was anyone else but the pressure on the pulse point on his neck assured Louis that Nick’s intentions were anything but pure. “You don’t need to know _how_ , darling. Just that you won’t remember a thing about what we did, only the lies that I’ve told your brain to feed you.”

Louis frowned and he opened his mouth to say something else but nothing happened. His head pounded all of a sudden and he crumpled forwards from the intensity of it. Nick’s feet swam in and out of focus and there was a pressure on his back before it disappeared.

Louis woke sometime later in his bed, fully clothed, with a thumping headache. He winced as he sat up, feeling like he was hung over. He didn’t remember drinking, though. He blinked and realised that it was still light outside. He yawned and grabbed the bottle of water that was sitting on top of his bedside drawers. He quickly cracked the cap and took a few long sips, feeling relieved as the water soothed his headache a little. He picked up his phone and saw that it was only early evening. He wondered how long he had been asleep for.

With another yawn, Louis shuffled from the bedroom in search of his friends. He found them downstairs in the common room and he immediately settled into Harry’s side on the couch. Harry’s arm came around him and Louis tucked his head under Harry’s chin, listening to the conversation that was going on around him. He still felt sleepy, which was odd. He wasn’t sure how long he had slept, or when he had even felt tired, but apparently he had felt tired enough to take a nap on a Saturday afternoon. Without Harry. Which was even stranger to Louis as they often napped together. 

Harry turned a little and kissed the top of Louis’ head. “Hi,” he said. “Did you have a good sleep?”

“I think so?” Louis snuggled closer to Harry, sliding his hand under the hem of Harry’s shirt ever so slightly. “I’m hungry, though.”

Harry laughed. “C’mon, let’s get you something to eat.”

“But I’m snuggling with you,” Louis protested weakly. His stomach rumbled and he shot Harry a sheepish look. 

“C’mon, food time, Boobear,” Harry said.

Louis froze at the nickname. It had been a long time since he had heard that nickname. He wasn’t sure how he felt about it, but one look at the crestfallen expression on Harry’s face made him move. He gently cupped Harry’s face and kissed him soundly on the lips. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “You can call me that.”

“It doesn’t remind you…?” Harry trailed off, biting his lip. 

“Not coming from you,” Louis replied honestly. “Let’s get some food.”

Harry nodded and they headed for the kitchen to get something to eat. Louis felt a little fuzzy still as they walked hand in hand to the kitchen.

“Oh,” Harry said as they entered the kitchen. “I forgot to ask before you fell asleep. How was training with Nick?”

“It was good,” Louis replied automatically. “He said I did really well.” Harry beamed at him and Louis wondered why the words left a horrible taste in his mouth.

~*~

“ _Shit_.”

“…Lou, what’s going on?”

“Nothing, go back to sleep,” Louis urged. He wiped the cold sweat off his brow and forced his force field down. His breathing was heavy like he had just run a mile without preparing for it. His hands shook and he had no idea why. 

“Did you have another nightmare?” 

Louis looked over at Harry who had sat up as well, his hand rubbing soothing circles on the naked skin of Louis’ back. “I… Yeah, I think so.”

Harry dropped a kiss onto his shoulder. “Want to talk about it?”

Louis searched his mind and shook his head. “No,” he replied. “It wasn’t anything different to the last ones.”

“Lou,” Harry said softly. “Don’t you think it’s time you went and saw Doctor Simmons about this?”

Louis shook his head and got out of bed. “No, it’s… It’s _nothing_ ,” he said, hastily pulling on a shirt and shoving his feet into a pair of vans. 

“Where are you going?” Harry asked, his voice laced with concern. 

“I just… I don’t know. I need to get out of here.”

“Do you want me to come with you?” 

“No.” Louis sighed and tried to ignore the look of hurt that crossed Harry’s face at his harshness. “I just need to run or something. I’ll be back soon, I promise.”

Harry huffed out a breath and nodded. “Okay,” he said. 

Louis leaned across the bed and kissed Harry soundly on the lips before pulling back. He left the room and headed for the lifts. He had no idea what was going on but ever since the other weekend when he’d gone out of town with Nick again, he had been even more frazzled than usual. His powers were on the fritz and he had no idea why. He was constantly having nightmares about his family dying right before his eyes, coupled with the explosion on the motorway that had knocked him out. It was exhausting trying to sleep. He hadn’t had a decent night sleep in a long time. 

He knew he was worrying Harry as well. It was hard keeping things from Harry when he slept next to Louis every single night. If he didn’t think it would break Harry’s heart, he would have suggested to Nick a while ago that he make good on his suggestion to put them into separate rooms. It was silly, though. He needed Harry as much as Harry needed him. They were two peas in the same pod, after all. 

It was dark outside. Thankfully the moonlight and the smattering of stars in the clear night sky gave Louis enough light to see where he was going. He had no idea what the time was but he didn’t care. The moment his feet hit the track he always ran, he didn’t care about anything. The soothing thumping sound of his feet hitting the ground brought Louis a sense of peace, strangely enough. It was an action he was used to doing, like brushing his teeth or making a cup of tea – he did it on autopilot. 

His lungs burned as he ran faster than he normally did, the cold air seeping into them. He just needed to get out of his head for a while, that was all. He needed to run, to get this out of his system and spend the rest of the night lying awake in Harry’s arms until they had to get up for class. He could do this. He could live on a couple of hours’ worth of sleep per night. It wouldn’t kill him. Not yet, at least. It’d probably kill him eventually, though.

“Hey.”

Louis stumbled and his powers reacted before he could think, whipping a tight force field around the person who spoke. He winced as he landed on the ground with a thud, twisting his ankle with the fall. 

“Fuck, Lou, get this thing off me!”

Louis blinked up at Zayn and quickly released the binding force field from around Zayn’s chest where it had been slowly creeping up, crushing him inside of it.

“What the fuck was that?” Zayn spat.

Louis laid back in the dirt, sweat clinging to his brow and probably his back as well. “I’m sorry.”

Zayn huffed and sat down next to Louis. He ran a hand over the ankle Louis twisted before lying down on his back next to him. Zayn’s hand immediately found his own, their fingers lacing together. It was comforting. Louis didn’t even understand _why_ he needed to be comforted but apparently he did.

“When I was little,” Zayn started, his voice thick like he had just woken up. Louis wondered if Harry had woken him, causing Zayn and Liam to worry. “I used to lie like this outside with my sisters. We’d find shapes in the stars and see who could find the strangest looking one.”

“That’s a penis,” Louis said immediately, pointing up to the sky and to his right with his free hand. Zayn laughed. 

“Yeah, it is,” he agreed. “That’s a cat.”

Louis looked over to where Zayn’s finger was pointing and nodded, dirt mattering into his hair. “Yeah, it is,” he said. 

“And that’s a bone,” Zayn added. “I wonder if there’s a dog up there.”

Louis hummed. “That one’s Mufasa.”

“Remember who you are, Simba,” Zayn said dramatically. He squeezed Louis’ hand and looked over at him. “I’m not going to get all philosophical on you.” Louis snorted. “But Harry’s really worried and frankly, I am too. So, when you’re ready.”

Louis stayed silent. He kept his gaze up on the stars glinting down on them. He shook his head. “There is nothing to worry about,” he started. “I just keep having nightmares, nothing to worry over.”

“It is, though,” Zayn said. “Especially if they’re making your powers react like that.”

“I am sorry about that,” Louis said sincerely. “I have no idea what happened.”

“You need to see Doctor Peters about that,” Zayn said. “And then Doctor Simmons for some help in relaxing your mind so you don’t have nightmares.”

“That’s what yoga is for, though,” Louis replied. 

“Yeah, and when did you last do yoga?” Zayn asked and Louis bit his lip in response. “Exactly. Liam said you haven’t been to yoga in weeks.”

“Running is better,” Louis replied. “And I play footie with Niall three times a week as well. I don’t need yoga.”

“Yoga helps centre you,” Zayn pointed out. “And you, mate, need to be centred.”

“Maybe,” Louis said. They fell silent again and Zayn sighed. He rolled over onto his side and propped his head on his hand. He looked down at Louis and clasped Louis’ hand in his free one once again, resting them both on Louis’ stomach. 

“Whatever is causing these nightmares to happen is connected to your powers,” Zayn started. “And since your powers are acting up, you need to get it fixed.”

“I know,” Louis said softly. “I do. It’s just… I don’t remember things, Zayn.”

“What do you mean?” Zayn asked concerned. 

Louis licked his lips. “Like this week, I feel like I’m losing chunks of time,” he started. “I know that I have, like, gone to training or something, and that’s it. That’s all I know.”

“That’s all you know?” Zayn echoed.

Louis nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “I don’t _remember_ what has happened except that I’ve ‘done good’ and that Nick is proud of my progress.” He sat up abruptly. “How can he be _proud_ of my progress when my powers are fucking up?”

Zayn sat up as well. “What are you saying?”

Louis stood and ran a hand through his hair. His ankle felt better, which was good. He put weight on it to test it and gave a small sigh of relief when it didn’t twinge with pain. “I mean… I don’t know what I mean.”

“Lou, you’re freaking out over nothing,” Zayn said. He stood up as well and wrapped Louis in a tight hug. “You need to speak with Doctor Peters and Doctor Simmons and sort this out, yeah? They’ll figure out what is going on and you’ll be right in no time.”

“Yeah,” Louis agreed. “Sure.”

Zayn pulled Louis closer so their bodies were flush against each other. “I love you, Lou,” he said. “And you’re important to _all_ of us. So you need to get better, okay? We’re a team. We can’t function without you.”

Louis gave him a small smile. “Does that mean you’ll give me a piggy back ride back to our rooms?”

Zayn scoffed. “Not bloody likely,” he said, shoving Louis away from him. “You’re not as light as you look.”

“How very dare you,” Louis said, mock offended. He put a hand to his chest and gaped at Zayn.

“Drama queen,” Zayn muttered fondly. He swung an arm around Louis’ shoulders and Louis immediately wrapped one around Zayn’s waist so they could walk together. “Promise you’ll see Doctor Peters soon?”

Louis nodded. “I will,” he promised. He’d do almost anything to fix his problem. He didn’t want to admit it to anyone but it was beginning to scare him how out of control his powers were. Tonight was no different. He could have easily killed Zayn by accident with the force field that he had produced. He didn’t understand what was going on, and he knew that the sooner he knew, the better it would be and that he’d be able to fix it but it was scary. He was petrified in case there wasn’t anything _to_ fix. Louis wasn’t sure what he would do if that was the case. He wouldn’t know how to live with himself if he had hurt one of the boys.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve  
 _Louis_  


It was sunny. There wasn’t a cloud in sight and Louis wasn’t sure if it was Zayn’s doing or if it was natural weather but Louis was taking advantage of it with Harry by his side. Harry was more underneath him than by his side with Louis’ head resting on Harry’s stomach. Harry carded his fingers through Louis’ hair, making Louis feel completely sleepy. Harry’s voice was soothing above him where he was reading a book on Louis’ iPad. Louis wasn’t even really paying attention to the story itself, Harry’s voice was far too gorgeous and he found himself just listening to the low rumble of his slow speech as he read. Louis couldn’t say where they were at in the story if he was put on the spot and asked. It was a good thing that it wasn’t anything for their school work, though, or he would be in a lot of trouble.

“Hey,” Harry said breaking the spell. “Are you falling asleep on me?”

“Not at all,” Louis lied. “Keep readin’, ’arreh, ’s nice,” he mumbled, keeping his eyes closed. Harry’s hand pushed his hair away from his forehead and he leaned down to kiss Louis softly on the lips. 

“I can stop,” Harry said. 

“Mmm, no. More kisses please,” Louis requested, puckering his lips. Harry laughed and pressed his lips to Louis’ own. The angle probably was awkward for Harry but he didn’t protest, much to Louis’ happiness. He pulled back a moment later and Louis blinked up at him sleepily. He reached up and idly ran his thumb over Harry’s bottom lip. “Pity it’s a school night,” he said. “We could stay up all night otherwise.” He hummed and winked at Harry. “Maybe tomorrow?”

A rush of breath left Harry’s mouth and he nodded. “Yeah,” he mumbled in agreement. 

“Keep reading, love,” Louis said a moment later, taking in Harry’s flushed cheeks. He closed his eyes again and let Harry’s smooth voice wash over him. 

He had taken the advice of Harry and Zayn and had scheduled a time to see Doctor Simmons. His first appointment was after their simulation training the next day. Nick had scheduled a Friday training, much to everyone’s surprise. They were used to doing their simulation exercises on a Monday and would use their Friday afternoons to organise date nights and nights out. Thankfully it hadn’t put anyone out this time but Zayn had grumbled about needing the extra time for a mock exam he was taking the following week. Louis didn’t care either way, he and Harry would probably stay up all night talking or playing video games, no matter if they had training on the Friday or not. 

It was nerve wracking just thinking about seeing Doctor Simmons. Louis knew she was good at her job and she had Harry virtually nightmare free. His nightmares only cropped up whenever he was overly stressed or when he hadn’t had time to do yoga, thankfully both of which rarely happened. Harry was too precious, in Louis’ mind at least, to be plagued by nightmares. It was hard enough that he had to witness and experience what he had on the motorway; he didn’t need to be constantly reminded of it in his dreams, too. 

Doctor Peters had tested Louis’ powers out the day before and she had scheduled some time to spend with him the following week to do some more tests. She hadn’t told Louis exactly what was going on, and it had Louis nervous when she wouldn’t divulge any information. She had simply told him that she needed to do more tests before she was able to come to a proper conclusion. Louis didn’t like the sound of that but he trusted her, she was brilliant at her job, as he had experienced first-hand, and he knew that if anyone could figure out what was going on with his powers, it was her.

“I did it!” Zayn’s loud voice cut through the air, shattering any illusion Louis had of nodding off to sleep while Harry read to him. 

“Did what?” Louis asked. 

“Where’s Liam?” Zayn wondered, ignoring Louis’ question. 

Louis pouted. “He’s playing footie with Niall over there,” he said, waving a hand in their general direction. He heard Zayn call them over and he sat up, leaning heavily against Harry, who slung an arm low around his waist. He pressed a kiss to Louis’ temple and Louis smiled, kissing him properly. “You’re so warm,” he mumbled and Harry beamed at him.

“And you’re so cute when you’re sleepy,” Harry returned, kissing Louis again.

“What’s going on?” Niall asked, narrowly missing Louis with the football as he dribbled it between his feet and kicked it to the side. Louis glared at Niall who sheepishly grinned and picked up the ball.

“I passed my first powers exam!” Zayn exclaimed happily. 

“Babe, that’s great!” Liam said excitedly. He threw his arms around Zayn in a tight hug and kissed him soundly on the lips. 

The ground suddenly got warmer underneath Louis’ hands and he shielded his eyes with his hands as the sun in the sky grew brighter. He knew it was Zayn’s doing and he cleared his throat loudly.

“Uh, Zayn,” Louis said. “Your powers are working over-time there… Seriously, Zayn, you’re going to burn the entire universe if you don’t calm down.”

Zayn broke the kiss with Liam and turned to look at Louis, dazed. “Huh?”

“Well,” Louis drawled. “ _That_ certainly brings an entire new meaning to the definition of hot.” He winked at them and Zayn’s gaze focused on Louis.

A dark cloud suddenly appeared above Louis’ head and just before it started pouring down with rain, Louis produced a solid force field, covering both Harry and himself. He watched as the water slid down the outside of the force field like it was a protective bubble and he shot Zayn a cheeky grin.

“Just let me have this, Lou,” Zayn said.

“And have me get soaking wet? No,” Louis replied, shaking his head. 

The cloud dissipated and Louis looked over at Harry who was grinning at the sight. Louis lowered the force field and looked at the ground surrounding them. The ground was drenched everywhere outside of the perfect circle that he and Harry were in. He was quite proud of himself for that. 

A moment later, another cloud appeared, pouring out rain on top of Louis and Harry. Louis squealed and Harry giggled in delight. Louis mourned for his iPad, but when he looked over, it was out of the range of the rain. He looked up at Zayn through his saturated hair and poked his tongue out childishly. He figured he’d get Zayn back eventually. Zayn was obviously too happy right then for Louis to be too mean to him. He knew how much these exams meant to Zayn and that he passed them successfully. 

Louis wasn’t looking forward to exam time at all. He had a feeling that he was destined to fail everything once again. It didn’t help that he had been so distracted lately, either, but he figured he would attend and that was the least he could do for some of them.

“Looks like you’ve got the hang of that then,” Niall said with a laugh. 

Louis stood, his sodden clothes sticking to his body. “I hate you, Zayn,” he grumbled.

The cloud and the rain disappeared and Louis shivered, cold and wet. He pushed his hair out of his face and lunged at Zayn, wrapping his arms around Zayn in a tight, wet hug. Zayn squawked and Louis peppered sloppy kisses down his cheek. The others laughed and eventually Zayn pushed him off, flinging mud at him with his powers. Louis grinned at him brightly.

“Well, I have to shower now,” Louis said. “Because I have mud in my hair and that is going to take ages to wash out.”

“I’ll come with you, Lou,” Harry said as he got up off the ground. He was muddy as well, not as much as Louis, but the mud clung to his trousers and his palms quite persistently. “Niall, can you take Lou’s iPad? I don’t want to get mud on it.”

Niall nodded and reached for the device, clasping it in his hands. Louis thanked him and he headed into the mansion with Harry so they could shower. Louis yawned through his shower and when Harry suggested he have a nap, Louis couldn’t find it in himself to argue.

Freshly washed and in dressed loose jogging bottoms and no shirt, Louis curled into bed next to Harry. 

“I’m just going to read,” Harry said. “I need to get this done before tomorrow’s class.”

Louis nodded sleepily. “Okay,” he replied. “Wake me for dinner?”

“Of course,” Harry promised. He kissed Louis softly on the lips and Louis shuffled down the bed, pulling the covers up as he settled with his head on Harry’s stomach. Harry’s hand immediately found its way into Louis’ hair and he stroked Louis’ scalp gently. Louis drifted off to sleep to the sound of Harry’s heart beating steadily in his ear and the feeling of Harry’s fingers on his scalp. 

Louis woke with a start a while later. He felt a pressure on his shoulder and he snapped his attention to it. Harry was looking at him with wide eyes and was clawing at his throat. Louis blinked and Harry pinched his shoulder again. He had no idea what was going on but a moment later, the room started to shake. He looked up and saw his force field pressing against the walls of the room. It was big and blue coloured, making the entire room shake. Louis closed his eyes and concentrated on bringing it down. He heard Harry gasping for air a second later, his hand against his throat like he had been choking. Louis hesitated as he reached out to touch Harry. He caught Harry’s scared expression and got out of bed to put as much distance between himself and Harry as he could.

“I…” he said. “Sorry. I…”

“…Lou,” Harry said with a croaky voice. “What?”

Louis blinked. “Nightmare,” he mumbled in response.

“Come here,” Harry asked softly. 

Louis bit his lip but climbed back into the bed. Harry automatically curled around him. 

“Talk to me,” he requested.

Louis swallowed thickly and closed his eyes. He recounted the nightmare he had been trapped in. It was strange, even for Louis, but it had felt real. All of it had felt real.

“It felt more like a memory,” Louis said. “But that’s impossible; I’ve never been involved in a bank robbery before.” He sighed and looked down at Harry. “Did I hurt you?” he asked.

Harry shook his head. Louis didn’t need an empathic ability to know that Harry was lying. 

“I did,” Louis said. “I’m _so_ sorry, Harry. I didn’t have any idea what was going on.”

“It’s okay, Lou,” Harry said. Louis wasn’t sure who he was trying to reassure but it wasn’t working – for either of them. “What else happened in your dream?”

Louis sighed. “Someone was forcing me to use my powers,” he started. “There were two bank robberies. One week apart, the same time each day. Someone…” he trailed off. “It was like I was being forced to protect someone, keep someone invisible while they robbed the bank.”

“Sounds weird, even for you,” Harry commented. Louis didn’t have the heart to poke him, not after he had just been choking Harry with his force field. 

“Harry,” he started slowly. “Maybe it would be best if you roomed with Niall until Doctor Peters figures some way to fix me.”

“No,” Harry said firmly. “I can always wake you from a nightmare. What if you accidentally kill yourself? I can’t risk it.”

“You’re risking yourself, though,” Louis protested, pulling back enough so that he could look properly at Harry. There was an angry red mark across Harry’s neck, one that couldn’t pass for love bites. He reached out a hand and gently ran a finger over the mark. “I can’t… Harry, I couldn’t live with myself if I hurt you. I’ve _already_ hurt you.”

Harry grabbed Louis’ hands in his own and shook his head. “I’m not leaving,” he said. “We’re in this together, okay?”

Louis sighed. Harry could be stupidly stubborn when he wanted. “Okay,” he relented. 

“Good,” Harry said. He pulled Louis in for a hug and Louis all but melted into Harry’s embrace. His nightmare had rattled him. It was strange. He couldn’t bring himself to share the part of his dream with Harry where he had witnessed a man being killed. He didn’t know how Harry would react to that. It wasn’t even the fact that the dreams felt so real that rattled Louis, it was the fact that they seemed to _fit_ in with the slots in his mind where there were no memories. He made a mental note to bring it up with Doctor Simmons in their session tomorrow. He just hoped that she could help him make some kind of sense of everything that was going through his mind. If she couldn’t, he had no idea what he would do.

“C’mon,” Harry said after a few long moments. “It’s almost dinner time, we should get going.”

“Alright,” Louis said with a nod. They got out of bed and Louis slipped one of Harry’s hoodies over his head, burrowing in its warmth. Harry took his hand and they left the room together. Guilt crept into Louis’ mind as he caught sight of the red mark on Harry’s neck as they walked and he wondered if he could get away with staying awake all night just to make sure that Harry didn’t get hurt again. He decided that it would probably work, at least until he got to see Doctor Simmons, and find some answers. Harry grinned when Niall joined them at the lifts and as the doors closed, Louis lost himself in his thoughts, missing their conversation entirely.

~*~

“Harry, _stop_!” Louis hissed. He batted Harry’s hand away from his arse, squirming away from his boyfriend.

“But, _Lou ___,” Harry protested weakly, reaching to cup Louis’ arse again. He gave it a squeeze and Louis batted at him again.

“Not now,” Louis said, unable to keep the grin from his face. “We’re about to go into the simulation and I can’t concentrate if I have a raging boner.”

“Maybe we should take care of that then?” Harry asked cheekily. He pulled Louis so Louis was flush against him and bit his lip, smiling at Louis. Louis put his hands on Harry’s X-Men clad chest and pushed back gently. 

“Not today,” he whispered. He kissed Harry briefly on the lips and stepped back to put some distance between them. He wanted Harry as much as Harry wanted him but he wasn’t going to have his first sexual experience with Harry to be hurried hand jobs in the toilets or something before their class started. He wanted to be able to take his time to explore Harry’s body with his hands and his mouth; he didn’t want anything stopping that, especially a training session that was likely to leave them physically and mentally exhausted. 

Harry gave him a sad look and Louis forced himself to look away. He slung an arm around Niall’s shoulders and focused on the conversation he was having with Liam. Zayn was late, as usual, but Nick hadn’t arrived yet, so he was still safe.

“I have so much homework to do this weekend,” Liam grumbled. “I keep forgetting to do assignments and they end up being rushed. I think I’m going to fail my GCSEs.” 

“You won’t,” Harry said, joining them. “We should all work together this weekend. I’ll make biscuits!”

Niall grinned widely. “I’m in,” he said. “Ash will be as well, she’s staying in this weekend to study.”

“Ugh, exams,” Louis grumbled, tilting his head so it was resting against Niall’s own. “I’m not looking forward to exams. I’d rather just fail my A Levels again, to be honest.”

“You’re not going to fail,” Zayn said from behind them. “I’ve already passed one exam, you’ll all do fine.”

Louis huffed. He wasn’t so sure. He was sure the others would do fine but his own capability for remembering course work wasn’t what he wanted it to be. He didn’t know how he was going to cope with exams when his memory was so fuzzy. 

Nick arrived a moment later, pulling Louis’ attention to him. Nick let them into the room and before Louis could follow along with the others, Nick pressed a hand to his shoulder. He looked up at Nick expectantly but Nick just gave him a smile. 

“Good luck today, lads,” Nick said. He pushed some buttons on the touch pad by the door and closed it again behind them.

“I wonder what we’ll be dealing with today,” Liam said as he stretched his arms above his head. “I wonder what we’ll be doing for our exam…”

“Li, stop worrying,” Niall said. “You’re making _me_ nervous and I don’t like it.”

Liam crossed the room and gave Niall a giant hug. Louis couldn’t hear what he was saying to Niall but Niall’s expression softened and he gave Liam a loud, smacking kiss on his cheek before they separated.

“Comms in?” Louis asked a moment later, slipping his own ear piece into his ear and securing it. 

The boys all put theirs in and nodded at Louis. 

“Alright, let’s get this over with,” Louis said. 

Nick had changed things up for them in their recent simulations, going back to a robot each but the robots changed each time. They were bigger, more powerful and it took a _lot_ more energy each time for them to be defeated. They all knew that it was worth it, though, because the stronger they were individually and as a team, the better it was. 

It seemed like Nick had forgone sending individual robots in this time, though, as one very large robot loomed over them the moment the simulation activated. It was their biggest by far. The head alone was easily the size of their last robot. It cast a large shadow over them and Zayn immediately adjusted the sunlight in the room with his powers so they could see. There was nothing worse, Louis found, than trying to battle a large robot in the dark. It was terrible to try and navigate while not hurting his friends. 

“What’s the plan?” Liam called out. The robot was big but it was slow, from what Louis could see.

“Disable its core,” Louis immediately replied. “Can you use your heat vision to see where it’s located?”

“On it,” Liam replied. 

“Niall, shackle it’s feet,” Louis instructed. “If that doesn’t work, because that is one huge fucking robot, then we’ll have Zayn and Liam power up Harry so he can try and beat the fucker to death.”

“There’s no heat signature,” Liam said, his voice urgent in Louis’ ear through the comm piece. “Nick is a crafty thing, isn’t he?”

“Shackles aren’t working,” Niall added. Louis could see Niall manipulating the metal as fast as the robot could kick it up. They weren’t having much luck so far.

“Zayn, electrocute it with your lightning,” Louis said a moment later. “See if that can’t do anything.”

Zayn flew overhead of them and brought down several large lightning bolts onto the robot’s head. It sizzled and sparked a little but nothing else happened. 

“That’s shit,” Zayn said as he landed on the ground again. “We’re fucked.”

“Not yet,” Harry said. “Power me up, Zayn.”

Louis winced as a bright flash of lightning surged their way. Harry stepped in front of it and absorbed it into his body. Even though Louis knew it was safe, it still worried him every time something like that happened. He couldn’t begin to think what he would do if Harry got hurt from overloading on power.

Harry ran forwards and Louis had a force field shimmering at the ends of his fingers, ready in case he needed it. Harry jumped and punched the robot hard in the leg. Sparks flew out, glowing red as Harry’s fist connected with the robot. It wobbled on its feet but backhanded Harry a second later. Louis quickly whipped a force field around his boyfriend and guided him to land safely on the ground.

“Now is it shit?” Niall’s voice asked, coming through the comm.

“Almost,” Louis replied. He held up his hands and produced another force field. This one surrounded the robot entirely. It shimmered and twisted, curling its way around the head and down the body of the robot. He concentrated on crushing the robot inside of it. He heard the creak of the armour breaking and smiled to himself. 

He kept his concentration up, focusing on breaking the robot into tiny pieces that Liam would be able to melt down and Niall would be able to turn into something else. 

“Uh, Lou…” Zayn’s voice sounded panicked in Louis’ ear but Louis couldn’t lose focus. He needed to keep all of his energy on the robot to crush it and end the simulation. “…Louis.”

Louis blinked and looked over at Zayn who was pointing at an arm that had somehow _stretched_ his force field and had Harry in its grasp.

“Why is it always me?” Harry wondered. Louis could hear the pout in his voice. 

“Jump, Harry, I’ll catch you,” Louis replied. He shifted his focus and Harry shoved the robot’s hand open so he could jump out. 

He could see Harry falling to the ground but before he could hit, Louis felt his force field reacting without his knowledge. The force field blasted from his chest and knocked the robot backwards. It landed with an almighty thump and sent dirt and debris up with it. Louis winced as shards of glass flew at him and he lifted a hand to shield his face before slumped to the ground and promptly passed out.

“Wake up, Louis, _wake up_.”

Louis blinked his eyes open. His vision swam and Nick’s worried face came into view. “Huh?”

“Louis, that was…” Nick sighed and shook his head.

“What happened?” Louis asked urgently. He pushed himself up onto his hands and winced when he felt a sharp stinging sensation across his palms. He glanced down at his hands and saw they were covered with blood. He pulled a piece of glass from the palm of his left and bit his lip when it gushed with blood. 

“You’ve knocked everyone out, Louis,” Nick said. 

Louis looked passed Nick to see that his friends, and the robot, were all on the ground, unmoving. He hastily scrambled up, ignoring the sharp pain in his leg. He dropped down at Harry’s side and reached out to shake his shoulder.

“Harry,” he said desperately. “Love, wake up.”

Harry stayed unmoving and Louis looked back over to Nick, panic creeping up his chest. Nick crouched down beside him and placed a hand on Harry’s back. 

“What…?” Louis mumbled. 

Nick put his other hand on Louis’ shoulder, his fingertips pressing against the back of Louis’ neck ever so slightly. “You should go get cleaned up,” he said softly. “Take your time, get washed up, clean that hand of yours and I’ll come see you after, okay?”

Louis nodded dazedly. He got up and left the room without looking back. He showered and cleaned his hand out like he was on autopilot, methodically moving around until he was clean and in fresh clothes. 

He figured that his powers must have reacted badly and knocked everyone out but it didn’t explain why Harry wouldn’t wake up. 

Once he got back to his bedroom, Louis sat on the end of his bed, playing with the edge of the plaster he had put over the gash on his hand. It stuck to his fingertip and he smoothed it back down again. 

Louis had no idea how long he sat there for, waiting for Nick to come back to him. He wasn’t sure if he should go back downstairs but a voice in his head told him that it wasn’t a good idea. It was best that he waited for Nick to come back to him and tell him what was going on and how he could fix it. Louis took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before exhaling slowly. 

Minutes or hours later, Nick appeared, worry etched on his face. Louis looked up at him as Nick sat next to him on his bed. Nick turned Louis’ hand in his own and looked down at the plaster covered wound. He put his hand on Louis’ shoulders again, his fingertips giving a sense of comfort as they pressed into the nape of his neck. 

“What now?” Louis asked.

“They’re…” Nick paused like the answer was too hard to give. Dread filled Louis’ stomach. “They’re a bit mad.”

Louis closed his eyes and bit down on his lip hard.

“I saw the entire thing,” Nick continued. “It was all going good until you decided that you could crush the robot yourself. Your powers reacted, just like I feared they one day would, and your force field blasted everyone rather than protecting them.” He paused, his fingers pressing harder against Louis’ neck. “Louis, your powers are out of control.”

“I thought…”

“Well, you were wrong,” Nick replied. “Obviously our training isn’t helping. Maybe it’s this environment, maybe it’s all of the distractions or maybe it’s just you but it isn’t safe. Not anymore.”

Louis let out a shaky breath. “What do you suggest then?” he asked, worriedly. Nick was right. He wasn’t safe to be around anymore.

“Come with me this weekend,” Nick started. “I have a place that’s not that far from here. You can relax, recharge your batteries and focus on your powers rather than being distracted by cute boys with curly hair and pink lips.”

Guilt pooled in Louis’ stomach. Nick was right. He had been letting Harry distract him. He hadn’t been nearly as focused as he used to be and he put everyone else in danger. He was the danger. He was the reason that every single one of his friends had just been rendered unconscious. 

“C-can I see them?” Louis asked hesitantly. 

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Nick replied. “They’re pretty mad at you. Just take this weekend to yourself, let them cool down and things will be right as rain by Monday, I promise.”

Louis nodded. “You’re right.”

“Of course I am,” Nick said. He patted Louis on the back. “Pack a bag of clothes, and your X-Men suit and I’ll come and collect you in half an hour, okay? I just have to take the boys to the medic wing.”

Louis nodded again and got up off the bed. “Tell them I’m sorry?”

“Write them a note,” Nick said. He reached up and pushed Louis’ damp hair off his forehead. “And, actually, meet me down in the garage instead. It’ll be easier, okay?”

“Yeah,” Louis agreed. 

Nick gave a squeeze to Louis’ shoulder, his fingers brushing against the skin of Louis’ neck before he left the room. Louis blinked and grabbed an overnight bag from Harry’s wardrobe. He filled it with clothes – trousers, shirts and a couple of Harry’s hoodies that he loved. He packed rather quickly, dread bubbling in his stomach. He stuffed a pair of shoes into the side pocket of the bag and his iPad and its charger as well. He wasn’t sure how much free time he would have with Nick but it didn’t hurt to be prepared. 

He had just packed his toothbrush when he heard a voice in his head telling him that he should leave a note. Louis grabbed a sheet of paper from one of his notebooks and a pen from the desk. He scribbled out a note, barely reading what he was writing as he did. He just knew inside of him that it was what he wanted it to say. He folded the sheet of paper in half and put it on the pillow of his bed. He gave one last look around the room to make sure he hadn’t forgotten anything and left, closing the door firmly behind him. 

It was with a blank mind that Louis made his way down to the garage to wait for Nick. He wasn’t sure how much longer Nick would be but he trusted that Nick would come for him soon. He sat on the ground next to the car and folded his hands in his lap to wait. Wherever Nick was taking him and whatever they were going to do that weekend was surely going to benefit Louis over Louis staying at the school. He was absolutely certain about that.

~*~  
 _Harry_  


“Is this what a hangover feels like?”

Harry cracked an eye open and glanced around, looking towards the direction that he was sure Niall’s voice had come from.

“I don’t know,” Liam replied. “I’ve never had one.”

Niall groaned loudly from across the room. Harry could hear him shuffling about, probably getting up. Harry wanted to stay firmly put. His head hurt far too much for him to even consider moving. It wasn’t a wise idea at all, he thought. He closed his eyes again and gently rolled over onto his back. He could feel dirt under his fingernails and caking on his palms. He had no idea what had happened but whatever it was had hurt a lot.

“Shh, you’re all giving me a headache,” Zayn grumbled.

Against his better judgement, Harry sat up. He pressed a hand to the side of his head like it would somehow alleviate the pressure. It didn’t. He bit back a groan and curled his legs underneath himself in preparation to stand.

“What happened?” Harry asked groggily.

Liam looked over at him and Harry wondered if he looked as bad as Liam did. “No idea,” he replied with a shrug. He immediately winced and Harry understood exactly how he felt. Any slight movement made Harry’s headache worse as well. He desperately needed a drink of water to make himself feel better. 

“Oh, good, you’re awake.”

Harry looked up in time to see Nick wander into the room. He blinked up at him as Nick crossed the room to start helping them to their feet. He helped Liam first, who wobbled a bit but quickly gained his balance. Nick stopped at him next and Harry gratefully took Nick’s hand in his own to hoist himself up. 

“What happened?” Liam asked once Nick had helped them all to their feet. 

Nick looked a little upset and Harry immediately panicked. He looked around at the training room. The robot was still on the ground, defeated but Louis was nowhere to be seen. His heart thumped hard in his chest, beating against his ribcage like it wanted to burst out.

“Where’s Louis?” Harry asked, his voice hard. “Where is Louis?”

“Louis,” Nick started solemnly. “His powers reacted just as I feared they would. He almost killed all of you.”

“What?” Liam asked before Harry could open his mouth. “What exactly happened?”

Nick sighed and looked down at the ground for a moment. “I watched the entire thing. He thought he could control the robot and crush it with his force field but his powers backfired and while he defeated the robot, he knocked all of you out as well. I saw the force field come down on all of you, trying to suffocate you all and it wasn’t until I got into the room to stop Louis that it disappeared. He was out of control.”

Harry felt sick. His vision swam and he grabbed onto Liam who was closest. Liam pulled him close against his chest, his hand steady on Harry’s hip. Nick couldn’t be right. Louis would never intentionally hurt them. He knew Nick wouldn’t lie though, and that made Harry feel even worse. He sniffled and wiped at his eyes.

“Where is he?” he asked. 

“I think it’s best you go to the medic wing to get checked out before you worry about Louis,” Nick said softly. “I’ll take you all, okay? Doctor Peters will need to see if there has been any severe damage that Louis may have caused.”

“We feel fine,” Zayn replied. “Where is Louis?”

“Don’t argue with me, Malik,” Nick said harshly. “Louis is up in his room, you can see him _after_ you’ve been given the all clear by Doctor Peters.”

Harry nodded along with his friends and they followed him from the simulation room. He wished, not for the first time, that he could get a read on Nick’s emotions. He would just have to trust his teacher, though. Nick wouldn’t exaggerate a situation that was this dire, Harry knew that. It just made him feel sick to think that Louis could have really hurt all of them.

His mind flashed back to the first night that Louis arrived at the school and how his force field had reacted without his knowledge. It had blasted Harry through the wall to protect Louis and he wondered if that had been a similar situation. He wondered what exactly had happened for Louis’ force field to react like it did. He just hoped that Doctor Peters told them that they were fine so he could go and find his boyfriend and find out exactly what had happened. Something just didn’t sit right with him in the story that Nick had shared. 

Maybe it was his desperate need to believe that his boyfriend wouldn’t hurt them or something else entirely but Harry needed to find out the truth before he came to any logical conclusion. 

Liam slipped his hand into Harry’s own and squeezed it gently. He nodded at Harry before leading him from the room. Zayn and Niall glanced over at them briefly and followed behind. Harry silently followed his friends to the medic wing where Doctor Peters was treating a student who had broken their arm during their physical education training session. She told them to take a seat while she finished setting the cast on the student’s arm.

Harry let himself be pulled into Niall’s lap and leaned his head back against Niall’s shoulder.

“You feel it, don’t you?” Niall whispered. Harry nodded. He didn’t want to say anything in case it was just him projecting but if Niall could feel it too, then Harry thought that maybe it all wasn’t in his head. “It’ll be okay. It’s probably just the after effects of being knocked out.”

“Yeah,” Harry mumbled. “That’s it.”

He closed his eyes and let Niall rub soothing circles on his hip. Harry didn’t want to be there. He just wanted to go upstairs and see Louis and ask him what had actually happened. He knew that he wouldn’t be settled until he did, no matter how long he was kept in the medic wing for. He hoped it wasn’t for very long. His headache was still lingering but he felt a lot better than he had when he had woken up. He was still thirsty though, so he got up off Niall’s lap and took a small disposable plastic cup from the fountain in the small waiting area they were in. As he drank, he felt his headache lifting. 

Liam got up a moment later and filled two plastic cups of his own. He gave Harry a soft smile. “How’s your head?” he asked.

“A little better,” Harry replied. 

“That cut doesn’t hurt?” Liam asked, nodding towards Harry.

Harry frowned. “Cut?” he asked.

“Yeah, across your forehead,” Liam replied. “I thought you knew…?”

Harry shook his head and crossed the room to enter one of the patient bays where there was a mirror. He saw a gash across his forehead. It was caked with blood and dirt and looked rather angry. He reached up a hand to touch it and winced when he made contact for the first time. “Oh,” he said. Liam stood just behind him and hummed. 

“I’m sure Doctor Peters will clean that right up,” he said.

“Yeah, of course,” Harry replied absently. He sighed and looked down at his hands. They were splattered with blood as well and he clenched his eyes shut at the sight, his mind flooding with memories of the last time he had bloody hands like that. He took a deep breath and moved to the sink to his left to wash away the blood. He pulled out a small shard of glass and watched as the blood ran down his hand. It mixed with the water and swirled down the drain. 

“You alright?” Liam asked a moment later.

Harry looked up. “Yeah,” he said. “Got a cut on my hand.”

He turned off the tap and grabbed a wad of paper towel to dry his hands off. He re-joined the others in the waiting area and squashed into the seat next to Niall again. Niall laid his head to rest on Harry’s shoulder and slung an arm around his waist.

“Has Lou been to the medic wing?” Harry asked suddenly, frowning at the thought. “Do we know that? If his powers were acting up, why isn’t he down here?”

“Doesn’t he have that appointment with Doctor Simmons?” Liam asked. “Maybe he’s there and he’ll come see Doctor Peters afterwards?”

“Don’t worry, Harry,” Niall said from next to him. “I’m sure he’s alright. We’ll see him after this.”

Before Harry could respond, Doctor Peters beckoned them all into another bay and told them each to sit on a bed. Harry resolutely sat with Niall while Liam and Zayn sat together. Doctor Peters sighed.

“You boys are far too dependent on each other,” she said. “It’s not healthy.”

“We’re just dependent enough,” Zayn said, shooting her a challenging look.

Doctor Peters merely raised an eyebrow in his direction before she picked up an alcohol swab to clean Harry’s cut. He hissed in pain and Niall quickly grabbed his hand, twining their fingers together. He bit down on his lip while she cleaned the cut. 

“You’re going to need stitches,” she said. “Can you hold still while I do them?”

“Yes,” Harry replied. 

She numbed the area and worked carefully as Harry held as still as possible. Niall sent calming vibes off himself which Harry picked up from their connection. He kept his eyes closed through the ordeal and silently thanked Niall for being such a great friend. He breathed as evenly as possible, trying not to think about the fact that Doctor Peters was stitching up his forehead. 

“There,” she said after a few long minutes. “All done.” She put a small piece of gauze over the top of it and taped it down. It felt strange against his forehead but Harry knew it was better than risking infection.

She cleaned up Niall’s cuts next. His were all superficial and only required an alcohol swab to clean them. She moved onto Zayn and Liam next, cleaning out their superficial wounds as well. Harry yawned widely, feeling exhausted. 

“Are we done yet?” Harry asked once Doctor Peters had put the last bloodied swab in the bin.

“Not yet,” she said. “Nurse Gourley is going to take your vitals and I’m going to run some tests on your powers to make sure that nothing was damaged. This may take an hour or so.”

Harry glanced at Niall who just shrugged. He knew they wouldn’t be allowed to leave any earlier than Doctor Peters saw fit but it didn’t stop him from being annoyed. He huffed and moved his legs so they were crossed underneath himself rather than hanging over the end of the bed. They were all still in their X-Men suits and it was beginning to get uncomfortable, no matter how fantastic the fabric and combined science of them were. 

“I could super speed off to see how Louis is?” Niall asked in a whisper.

“Better not,” Harry replied. “It’ll take more than a few seconds and Doctor Peters will notice. She’ll probably sedate you when you got back for not staying put.”

“I’m faster than she is, though,” Niall pointed out. “I could be back before she knew it.”

A moment later, Nurse Gourley appeared in front of them and attached a blood pressure cuff to Niall’s arm. He shot Harry an apologetic look and Harry shrugged in response. He appreciated the offer but he knew that it was pointless for them to try and leave before Doctor Peters and Nurse Gourley were finished poking and prodding at them. 

It was more than an hour later by the time Doctor Peters had finished testing their powers. All of their results were normal, according to her, and they were free to go.

“How’s your forehead?” Zayn asked as they left the medic wing together. 

“Itchy,” Harry replied. Zayn reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze. They stopped at the lifts and waited for one to come back down and shuffled inside.

“I need a long shower,” Liam said, pushing the button for their floor. “I feel worse now than I do after a normal work out.”

“Same,” Niall agreed. “I hope Louis doesn’t want to study together still, I just want to shower, eat and then sleep for a few hours. Study can wait.”

“But we were going to have a night,” Harry said. The lift stopped and the doors opened. They stepped out and headed for their rooms. 

“See how he feels though first, yeah?” Zayn suggested. “He might not be feeling up to it after that display in the simulation room.”

“…Yeah, I guess,” Harry reluctantly agreed. He stopped outside of their room and hoped that Louis was back from his appointment. 

“We’ll all shower and then come back to yours after, alright?” Liam said and Harry nodded. “Just make sure he’s okay first.”

“I will,” Harry replied. He pushed the door opened to their room and saw that Louis wasn’t back yet. He looked at the time on his phone and realised that Louis still had another fifteen minutes scheduled for his appointment. Harry figured that he had enough time to have a shower before Louis got back. 

He grabbed fresh clothes and joined the others in the bathroom. He stepped out of his X-Men suit and made a mental note to put on a load of washing that night. The water felt amazing against his worn out skin. The dirt and sweat that had clung to his skin came off with ease, making Harry feel somewhat better. He washed his hair as well, massaging the shampoo into his scalp to get rid of the dirt that was in there, too, all the while being careful not to get the gauze on his forehead wet. He was thankful for the foresight he’d had to put a small sheet of plastic wrap across it to stop it from getting wet and ruined during his shower.

As a kid, Harry always loved going to the hair dressers because they would always wash his hair. It felt amazing to have someone else wash his hair, their fingers pressing down on his scalp in a gentle massage. It surprised him every time that he didn’t fall asleep while having his hair washed. The hair dressers that he went to loved his hair because it was so curly. They often commented about how envious they were of his natural curls and that they had had people who paid a lot of money to have the same kinds of curls that Harry did. It made him feel good, knowing that they loved his hair so much. When it first started to get wavy when he was fourteen, he didn’t know it was going to get as curly as it did. He had never had long hair before that, having always kept it short, but once he had grown his hair out, he found that he loved his curls. Gemma used to play with them all of the time before Harry started attending Xavier’s School. She had often commented that he had such lovely hair for a boy. Of course, that statement was always followed up by how it was such a tragedy that gorgeous hair like his was wasted on a boy but Harry didn’t care. He liked his hair and he liked when Gemma would scratch at his head until he fell asleep, even though she pretended that it was such a chore.

Once Harry was finished in the shower, he shut off the tap and dried himself off. He wrapped a towel around his head as he dried the rest of his body off and called out to the other boys that he was going back to his and Louis’ room. He hoped that Louis was there when he got back. He just wanted to cuddle with his boyfriend and kiss a little. He wouldn’t mind if they took a nap together, too. He silently hoped that the other boys would join them so they could all fall asleep together. It wasn’t often that they all piled together and fell asleep but when it happened, it was always good. They all snuggled around each other and sleep came easy and solidly for Harry on those nights. Almost every night he fell asleep with Louis was a good one, though, so he didn’t have to worry about that. Louis kept him safe. 

Even when Louis was having his own nightmares, his force field was out, protecting them from unseen harm. It warmed Harry’s heart to know that Louis cared about him that much to protect him, even in their sleep. It was a deep sign of intimacy, at least to Harry it was and he knew Louis felt the same. 

Harry quickly hung up his towels to dry, leaving his hair to finish drying by air. He hurried back to his and Louis’ room, anticipation bubbling in his stomach. 

“Lou?” he called out as he pushed the bedroom door open. Louis wasn’t there. He frowned. He quickly checked the time on his phone and saw it was five past the hour. Harry sat down on his bed and sighed. It was silly to worry, he thought. Louis was probably on his way back up in the lifts as Harry sat on his bed. He slipped his feet into a pair of fluffy socks and grabbed a hoodie from his wardrobe, smiling when he saw that his purple hoodie was gone. He figured Louis had it. He loved when Louis wore his clothes. It made his stomach swoop pleasantly every time it happened. They all shared clothes but seeing Louis wearing one of his jumpers made Harry feel giddy inside.

A movement out of the corner of his eye caught Harry’s attention after he had pulled on his hoodie and he crossed the room. His worry increased when he saw a folded sheet of paper sitting on Louis’ pillow. With sightly shaking hands, Harry reached out to pick it up. It was silly to get nervous over a piece of paper, Harry thought.

The moment he opened it, Harry wanted to pass out, or vomit, or both. He felt sick to his stomach.

_Dear Harry_ , it read.

_I am so sorry that I hurt you all. I know what I did was unforgivable._  
 _I’ve left the school. Indefinitely._  
 _My biological father and I have been in contact recently and I’ve decided to take him up on his offer to go and live with him._  
 _I’m not cut out to be a ‘superhero’. I’m not like you guys. I don’t contribute anything worthy to the group, especially not when I put you all at risk every time we train together._  
 _Please don’t try and contact me, it is for the best that we end it like this._

_Louis._

Harry’s vision swam. He blinked down at the note, trying to focus on it. It was Louis’ handwriting, he could tell that just by looking at it but he didn’t think that it _sounded_ like Louis. Louis wouldn’t just _leave_. He had no need to just leave. 

The letter mocked him. Harry was confused. He had no clue that Louis had been in contact with his biological father at all. As far as he knew, Louis and he weren’t on the best of terms. Louis didn’t like to speak much about him. Harry knew that Mark, Louis’ step-dad had been more of a dad to him than his biological father had. Even though Louis’ mum and Mark had split up shortly before the accident had happened. It didn’t make sense to Harry at all. 

He re-read the letter, taking in the familiar slant of Louis’ writing. It was definitely his writing, that he was certain of. He just didn’t understand how Louis could leave.

Harry’s knees gave out underneath him and he collapsed to the floor next to Louis’ bed, the full weight of the situation starting to take toll on him. Louis had left. He had left Harry. He had left their friends and the school because of a silly accident. Harry just wanted the chance to talk to Louis and make him see reason. None of them were mad at Louis, not at all. At least, Harry wasn’t mad. He could never be mad at Louis. 

They all knew that Louis’ powers had been acting up lately and that he was seeing both Doctor Peters and Doctor Simmons to figure out what was wrong. There was no need for him to just leave. 

Tears rolled down Harry’s cheeks and he bit his lip, clutching the sheet of paper tightly in his hands as if it would somehow squeeze the letter into changing its words. No matter how hard he gripped it, the words stayed the same. They still broke his heart. 

Harry’s heart felt heavy in his chest. His mind whirred as he tried to make sense of it all but nothing seemed to fit properly. He couldn’t blame Louis for wanting to leave. He knew how much he had struggled to fit in but he had thought they were all close, especially Louis and him. He told Louis that he loved him and he meant it. He had never felt that way about anyone before and he thought that Louis had felt the same. Harry wished, just for a moment, that Louis had taken him as well. They could have run away together. He wouldn’t ever say no to Louis. Not if it meant they would be together.

_Maybe he didn’t want to be with you anymore_ , his mind supplied. Harry’s stomach churned and he closed his eyes tightly. That couldn’t be it. Could it? Louis _loved_ him as much as Harry loved Louis. He wouldn’t just stop loving him for no reason. Harry sobbed and he clutched the letter to his chest. He didn’t understand anything. Just that morning he and Louis had woken up together, shared lazy kisses and talked about their weekend plans. None of it made sense. 

The floor was hard underneath Harry as he laid down on it, staring, unblinkingly, at the letter in his hand. He wondered if he stared at it long enough if it would make Louis come back to him. 

“…Harry?” Liam’s hand fell on his shoulder a moment later. “Harry, what’s wrong?”

The letter slipped from his grasp and he heard the hushed tones of Zayn reading it out loud. Harry closed his eyes to try and block out Zayn reading the letter that single handedly destroyed his life. He knew that he was crying still from the wetness on his cheeks. 

“ _Harry_ ,” Zayn said a moment later. “C’mon, mate, get up.”

Harry didn’t respond. His stomach was in his throat and he felt as though if he spoke, it would ruin whatever fantasy his mind had produced that Louis was just playing a prank on him. That he was hanging out in the corner of the room, invisible, and just waiting for the right moment to pop back out and scare them all.

It didn’t happen.

Strong arms lifted him up from the floor and put him on the bed.

“Harry, what happened? Where’s Louis?” Liam asked desperately. “Please tell me that letter is a hoax?”

Harry shook his head and fresh tears fell from his eyes. “No,” he mumbled. Liam wrapped his arms around Harry in a tight hug and Niall colourfully swore off to the side. Nothing was right. Liam’s arms around him felt wrong and Niall looked worried. He didn’t like that look on his best friend’s face. They all shared the same look of worry crossed with disbelief. 

“He’s gone, isn’t he?” Harry mumbled, looking up at Liam with tear stained eyes. “Why would he leave me?”

“I don’t know, Harry, I really don’t know,” Liam replied, hugging Harry tighter. Harry leaned into Liam’s touch and closed his eyes. The feelings from his three best friends seeped over to him, all very strong feelings of worry. He couldn’t even find his centre to shut it out of his mind. He didn’t really want to. Not particularly. It was sort of comforting to know they were feeling the same as he was.

“Where’s Nick?” Niall asked. “Didn’t he say that he was coming back to check on us?”

Harry felt Liam shrug underneath his head. “Yeah, I thought he said that too.”

“Something isn’t right,” Zayn said suddenly. “This entire thing is strange and I don’t like it. Louis wouldn’t just _leave_.”

“Zayn,” Liam said, his tone hard. “Not now.”

“When, Li?” Zayn snapped. “That note is pretty clear that we’re not to go and find him. His phone is sitting _right there_ on top of the bedside drawers. It’s pretty clear to me.”

They fell silent and Harry sensed anger coming off both of them. Niall suddenly replaced Liam, wrapping his arms around Harry’s middle. He pressed a kiss to the top of Harry’s head and moved them so they were sitting against the headboard a little more comfortably. 

Harry looked down at the grazes on his hands and wondered if it had all been a part of Louis’ plan. His mind raced with possible scenarios, each more ridiculous than the last. One of them had to be true, though, he thought. One of them had to be the real reason that Louis suddenly left.

Harry sat up abruptly, his head knocking into Niall’s chin. He crossed the room and rummaged through his wardrobe, pulling things out and leaving a mess behind him. Normally that would bother him but he didn’t care. He needed to know. 

“Harry, what are you doing, mate?” Niall asked from behind him. 

“It… It’s gone,” Harry said, defeated. He dropped his hands to his sides and let out a shaky side. 

“What’s gone?” Liam asked gently. 

“My overnight bag,” Harry replied. “I told Louis that it’s the bag I take back with me when I go home every now and then. It has my emergency credit cards in it and five hundred quid in cash.”

Niall let out a low whistle. 

“That doesn’t mean a thing,” Liam said hastily.

“It looks pretty clear to me,” Harry mumbled. “He’s gone, Li. He… He’s gone. He _left me_.”

Tears pricked the backs of Harry’s eyes as he started to sob again, the reality of the situation bearing down hard on his shoulders. 

“Why would he leave?” Harry asked brokenly. “H-he never said,” he hiccupped, “he never said he was in contact with his biological father. Did… Did he tell any of you?”

The three shaking heads made Harry feel a little better.

“Harry,” Zayn said softly, closing the gap between them. “Maybe you should come spend the night with Li and I.”

“No,” Harry said quickly. “I need to be here in case he comes back.”

“Do you think it’s wise to stay here alone, though?” Liam asked. 

“I’m not leaving,” Harry replied sternly. He crossed the room to lie down on Louis’ bed. He shuffled under the covers and pulled them up around his chin, uncaring that it was still the afternoon and that he hadn’t even had dinner yet. “You should all just go. I know you all have homework to do. I’ll be fine. I just want to be alone.”

“Not gonna happen, Haz,” Niall said, slipping under the covers with him. “You’re not getting rid of us that easily.”

“I’ll go grab some work,” Liam said resolutely. 

Harry turned onto his side, facing away from Niall. He clutched at Louis’ pillow and inhaled deeply, letting the scent of his boyfriend wash over him. That thought alone brought on another wave of sadness. He wasn’t even sure if he could call Louis his boyfriend anymore or not. He didn’t want to think that they had broken up, despite what the letter read, but a part of him figured that it was true. He didn’t care, though, he was still going to think of Louis as his boyfriend until Louis came back to tell him otherwise.

Zayn climbed into the bed as well and nudged Harry over so that he could settle in properly. He moved so that Harry could rest his head on Zayn’s lap and he stroked his fingers through his hair. “Want me to call Gemma?” he asked.

“No,” Harry replied softly. “I don’t… I don’t want her to know. It.” He paused and took a deep breath. “It makes it _real_ then. That he… that he left and he isn’t my boyfriend anymore.”

“Okay,” Zayn said gently. “We won’t call her.”

Harry nodded and closed his eyes again. He hoped that it was just a weekend trip and that Louis wasn’t leaving them for good. He didn’t want to think about that, though, it hurt too much. He had almost nodded off when Liam came back. He slid into the bed next to Zayn and reached over to tangle his fingers with Harry’s own for a brief moment, squeezing his fingers gently.

“It’ll be alright, Harry,” he said, sound more certain than Harry felt. “It’s Louis; we all know he can’t keep away from you for that long.”

Harry made a noise. “Yeah,” he mumbled. 

“So there’s no need to worry, okay?” 

“Tell me that again when it’s _your_ boyfriend who has suddenly disappeared. Then we’ll talk,” Harry snapped. He rolled over so that he was facing Niall and scrunched his eyes shut. He knew his comment was harsh but he didn’t need Liam’s faux optimism. He just needed Louis. “I’m sorry,” he said a moment later. “That was mean.”

“It’s okay,” Liam replied softly. “Just, get some sleep, Harry.”

Harry sighed and closed his eyes. A moment later, warm lips pressed against his cheek and he glanced up to see Niall shifting so they were almost nose to nose. 

“You alright?” he whispered. 

Harry shrugged. He wasn’t quite sure how to answer that question. He bit his lip and shuffled closer to Niall, who wrapped his arms tightly around Harry’s middle, pressing in as close as humanly possible. Harry buried his nose in the crook of Niall’s neck and let out a shaky breath. He just hoped that when he woke up, Louis would be the one holding him close as he slept. It was a stretch, Harry knew that but it didn’t stop him from hoping.

He missed Louis. He missed him a lot and it had only been a few hours. He needed proper answers as well, not just a note that was in Louis’ handwriting but didn’t sound a thing like the Louis he knew and loved. 

It was scary, though. He could get the answers he wanted, the truth about the whole thing, but what petrified him was that there was a possibility that Louis really didn’t want him anymore. Harry wasn’t sure how he would cope with that answer. 

Harry yawned widely and closed his eyes once more. Niall kissed the top of his head again and Zayn shifted so he was carding his fingers through Harry’s hair. Even though he wanted things to be different, Harry was glad that he wasn’t going through this without his three best friends all pressed in together in the one bed. Doctor Peters was wrong. They weren’t too dependent on each other; they were the only people each other could completely trust. With that thought going through his mind, Harry finally fell into an exhausted slumber.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter warnings: violence, manipulation.

Chapter Thirteen  
 _Harry_  


The weekend passed slowly.

A part of Harry expected that Louis would be back before the weekend was out. That he would be back because he couldn’t bear to be apart from Harry, that he had made a huge mistake in leaving with his biological father and that he really did belong with them, with _him_. 

It hurt. More than Harry thought it would. He knew he had loved Louis from the first moment they had met – he had been hopelessly infatuated, after all, and had fallen in love with him the more he had got to know Louis. It was hard, not seeing him throughout the day. It was harder going to sleep at night. He didn’t realise that he had become so quickly accustomed to sleeping in the same bed as Louis. Even when they had first started sharing, they had kept their distance but had both ended up tangled in each other’s arms by the time the sun rose in the morning. Falling asleep with Niall, Zayn or Liam just wasn’t the same. They didn’t scratch Harry’s head like Louis did and they didn’t feel the same to curl around. Harry fit perfectly against Louis, like a puzzle piece. Harry felt lost without him.

Maybe he was too dependent on Louis but Harry didn’t care. He needed Louis in his life. Wherever Louis was, though, he hoped that he was safe and happy. Even if they couldn’t be together, for whatever strange reason Louis’ mind had to have concocted, Harry only wanted him to be happy. He would prefer it if Louis had been happy with him but he understood how scary being a mutant could be.

Sunday evening was the worst for Harry. Every movement, every noise, had him looking up, hoping that Louis had changed his mind and had come back but every time, he was met with someone else that wasn’t Louis. His heart was heavy in his chest and he didn’t know how much more he could take. He just wanted Louis back in his arms where he belonged. The other boys and Ashley had been so patient with him, taking turns to sit with him and keep him company. Not that Harry was good company – he knew that he was probably impossible to be around but they did it anyway. They were good friends. 

Monday morning found Harry wide awake even before the sun had risen in the sky. Liam was curled up next to him, sleeping soundly. He shifted out from underneath the covers of Louis’ bed and slipped his feet into his pair of bunny slippers that Louis had bought him a few weeks beforehand. He couldn’t bear to sleep in his own bed. It looked so cold and uninviting across the room. It was silly, he thought, but Louis’ bed still held his smell and Harry wanted to wrap himself in it. It was going to be harder when Louis’ scent eventually wore away or washed off, only to be replaced with Harry’s own. 

He shuffled into the kitchen and put the kettle on. He automatically made two cups of tea and sighed when the second one just sat there. Harry sipped at his own mug and blinked back tears. He knew he was being stupid. It was just a cup of tea. To him, though, it was so much more. 

Liam entered the kitchen a moment later, rubbing at his eyes. He spotted the steaming cup of tea and immediately wrapped his arms around Harry in a tight hug. Wordlessly, he pressed a kiss to Harry’s cheek and stroked a hand down his back, rubbing it in soothing motions. Harry pulled back a moment later and wiped at his eyes with the sleeve of his jumper. 

“I miss him, Li,” Harry said after a few long moments. “I just wish he’d call me or email or _something_ so I know he’s okay.”

“He will,” Liam said with a confidence Harry wasn’t sure he felt. It was easy to say words, he decided. It was the outcome that was the difficult part. “I’m sure he just needs a week to get settled in and he’ll call you.”

Harry fell silent as he brought the cup to his lips. He took a long sip and sighed again. There was only so much hope he had left. The note Louis had left had been quite clear. He didn’t want to be contacted and Harry figured he surely wasn’t going to contact them either. 

“I don’t feel well,” Harry said. “I’m going back to bed.”

“Okay,” Liam said hesitantly. 

Harry looked at the second cup of tea and bit his lip. He walked away, leaving it sitting there on the counter. He didn’t have the energy to deal with everything that cup meant. He crawled back under the covers as soon as he was in his room, kicking off his slippers before hastily pulling his feet under the blankets as well. Everything felt cold without Louis. He pulled the covers high up under his chin and closed his eyes again. 

Liam didn’t re-join him.

The bed dipped a couple of hours later and Harry blinked his eyes opened to see Ashley in bed with him. 

“Oh, it’s toasty in here!” she said with a smile. She put her cold feet on Harry’s warm calves and wriggled closer. Harry didn’t even flinch. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Harry said listlessly. 

“You coming out for class?”

Harry shook his head. “No, I’m poorly,” he mumbled in response. 

Ashley put her hand on his forehead and hummed softly. “It’s okay, you know.” He looked up at her again. “That you feel this sad. It must be hard.”

Harry nodded once, his curls pushing against his eyebrow from where he was lying on them. “Yeah,” he mumbled.

“Do you mind if I stay with you for a little while?” Ashley asked.

“Okay,” he replied. She settled into the bed a little more and wrapped an arm around his middle. Harry let out a shaky breath and pressed in closer to her. She was still cold but Harry needed that. He needed to feel cold because he didn’t want to feel warm without Louis. He felt like every cliché there ever was of a teenager with a broken heart right then. He knew he was every cliché of a teenager with a broken heart, though, so that made him feel a little better. 

Not everyone found their soul mate at sixteen but Harry had and he didn’t know how to let Louis go. He didn’t _want_ to let Louis go. Louis was his everything. He didn’t know how to be a whole person without him. Nothing was right at all. Nothing felt right and he didn’t want to leave the bed until Louis came back for him.

“How’re your dreams?” Ashley asked after a while. 

“Horrid,” Harry replied. 

She stroked a hand through his hair, her fingers pressing against his scalp. It felt wrong. “When are you seeing Doctor Simmons next?” she asked gently.

“Don’t know,” Harry mumbled.

“Maybe you should make an appointment to see her, then?” she offered.

“No.” Harry rolled over so he was facing away from Ashley. She leaned over and kissed the back of his head before wrapping her arm around him again. Harry knew she was just trying to help but he didn’t want help – he wanted Louis, that was all. He sighed and eventually fell back asleep, his dreams plagued with burning cars and Louis being crushed to death in front of him while he helplessly watched from the sidelines.

~*~

“I’m Bella Swan.”

“You really fucking are, mate,” Niall said with a laugh. “Does that mean you’re getting out of bed then, Bella?”

Harry yawned and rubbed at his eyes. He sat up a little and looked at the cheery sun outside of his bedroom window. “Not today.”

“Alright.”

~*~

Thursday evening Harry finally got out of bed. He stuffed his feet into his bunny slippers and headed for the kitchen to get something to eat. Liam and Zayn were off in the gym, or so they said, and Niall was spending some much needed alone time with Ashley. Harry was grateful for his friends. They were being exceptionally patient and kind with him, even though he wasn’t sure if he deserved it.

A folded newspaper was sitting on the kitchen table as Harry took a cup of tea and a plate of toast over. He sat down in front of it and flipped open. On the front page was a big splash about how some of the crown jewels had been stolen. Harry sat there agape, staring at the headline. He scanned the article and frowned as he read. The article didn’t make sense to Harry. He had thought it was impossible to steal the crown jewels and yet, there was a front page article on how someone had managed to do just that.

He read through the entire article, completely forgetting his plate of toast and cup of tea, both of which were rapidly going cold. He reread it to make sure that he hadn’t missed a part. Something about the entire thing seemed off to him. Though, a lot of things lately had seemed off to Harry and he wasn’t sure how much he could actually trust his abilities anymore. 

Harry picked up his cup a tea and drank a mouthful, grimacing at the taste. He got up to make himself a fresh one and sat back down at the table when it was done. He chewed slowly on his toast as he read the follow up articles throughout the newspaper, detailing the history of the times people had tried, and failed, to steal the crown jewels. Harry wasn’t even sure who would _want_ to steal them – they were a part of British history, as far as he was concerned. 

“You’re up!” Liam’s voice exclaimed, sounding surprised. Harry looked up and saw Liam standing in the doorway to the kitchen. 

“Hi,” Harry said. “Did you know that someone stole the crown jewels?” he asked.

“Yeah, I read it this morning,” Liam replied absently. “How are you feeling? Have you had anything to eat?”

“Just had some toast,” Harry said. “And I feel fine. I can’t believe someone stole the crown jewels!”

“They’ll get them back,” Liam replied as he fixed himself a cup of tea as well. “They have, like, tracking things on them, don’t they?”

Harry shrugged. “I thought it was impossible to steal them?”

“Apparently not,” Liam commented. He joined Harry at the table and pushed the paper to the side. Harry glanced down at it before looking at Liam whose face was etched with concern. “How are you really?”

“I’m alright,” Harry replied. “Got sick of being in bed and I was hungry.”

“Good,” Liam said. “Do you think you’ll come to class tomorrow?”

“Probably, yeah,” Harry replied with a nod. “You don’t need to worry about me, Li.”

“Of course I do,” Liam said. “You’re my little brother.”

Harry smiled into his cup before taking another sip of tea. “Brothers from another mother,” he commented and Liam beamed at him. “Where’s Zayn?”

“In our room,” Liam answered. “I was just coming to get some water and we were… Well. We were going to go to sleep.”

Harry snorted. “Sure you were.”

Liam flushed and shrugged. “It can wait,” he said. “I wanted to check in on you anyway.”

“I thought it was Ashley’s turn to watch over me?” Harry wondered. 

“We weren’t–”

“It’s okay,” Harry said, cutting Liam off. “I appreciated it.”

Liam gave him a soft smile. “We were worried about you.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

Liam reached over and twined the fingers of their free hands together. They silently finished their cups of tea and Harry told Liam to go to bed and that he would do the dishes. Liam finally left after some careful pestering and a comment about Zayn’s impatience. Harry washed the dishes and left them to drain on the side of the sink while he picked up the newspaper again. He skimmed over the article one more time before folding it in half. He tucked it under his arm and headed back to his bedroom to crawl back under the covers. 

Both Ashley and Niall joined Harry after a long while, both climbing into bed with him with Ashley in the middle. Harry passed the newspaper over to Ashley and waited for her to unfold it.

“What am I meant to be looking at?” she asked, poking his calf with her big toe under the blankets.

“Someone stole the crown jewels!” Harry exclaimed. 

“Yeah, I read it this morning,” she replied calmly, clearly not understanding what Harry was getting at.

Harry huffed. “It’s _impossible_ to steal the crown jewels.”

“Apparently not, mate,” Niall said. “Seeing as someone’s done just that.”

“I don’t get it, Harry?” 

Harry took the newspaper back off Ashley and folded it in half. He placed it carefully on the floor and flopped back in the bed. “Something isn’t right with that.”

“You’re probably reading too much into it,” Niall said through a yawn. “Sleep now, Haz, I’m tired.”

“Sorry,” Harry mumbled. “You guys go to sleep.”

“Night, Harry,” Ashley and Niall said in unison. They both squeezed his hand gently before curling around each other to sleep. 

Harry stared up at the ceiling for a long time, his mind whirring with thoughts. Niall and Ashley’s breathing eventually evened out, indicating that they had fallen asleep. He glanced over at them, seeing them curled into each other, their hands tangled while they slept. A pang went through him at the sight. He missed Louis. He missed falling asleep with Louis.

With a sigh, Harry shifted onto his side, facing away from Ashley and Niall and he shut his eyes with the hope that sleep would come fast.

~*~

Harry wasn’t paranoid.

Things weren’t lining up and he wasn’t sure if that was because he had spent days in bed, not really participating in the real world but nothing made sense to him. He didn’t want to join the others in their simulation training, claiming that he was too tired. He went along, though, figuring that he could sit in the observation room with Nick and watch the others train.

“There’s no point if you don’t participate, Harry,” Zayn said before the lesson started. “We’re a team.”

“We’re not a team without Lou,” Harry replied. “He was our leader. How are we meant to organise a tactic that will actually work without him?”

“That’s what Liam’s for, though,” Zayn pointed out. “He and Louis always trained together when we didn’t, Li will know this stuff, right?” 

Liam stared at them, wide eyed. “Er…”

“Afternoon, boys!” Nick said cheerfully as he approached, cutting off any chance Liam had of replying.

“I’m not participating today,” Harry said before they could enter the training room. “I’m still poorly.” 

Nick looked over at him and his eyebrow quirked in Harry’s direction before he nodded. “Fair enough.”

Nick set up a simulation for Niall, Liam and Zayn to complete and Harry waved at his friends before following Nick to the observation room. He took the seat next to Nick’s own and crossed his ankles underneath the chair. 

Out of the corner of his eye, Harry could see Nick staring at him. He turned to face his teacher and saw that Nick’s brow was furrowed. “What?” he asked softly.

“Hmm? Oh, nothing,” Nick said, waving him off. “Just thought that the shield around your mind would’ve gone without Louis here.”

Harry looked at him, confused. “What?” he repeated with more gusto. “What shield around my mind?”

“Never mind, Harry,” Nick said, waving him off. “The boys are about to start. Let’s see how they go.”

Harry turned his attention to the large screen in front of them that showed the entire training room. He watched as the simulation started and his friends started to devise a plan to stop the robot. 

He wondered what Nick meant. He didn’t have a shield around his mind, did he? He wasn’t sure what Louis had to do with it, either. Louis wasn’t there and hadn’t been in a week. A week, Harry realised with a pang of guilt. Louis hadn’t been at the school for an entire week. He dropped his gaze from the screen and looked at his hands that were folded in his lap. It had been an entire week without Louis. He didn’t know how he had survived it so far. He just wanted things to go back to normal, to train with Louis, to laugh with him, to wake up next to him, to kiss him. 

Before Harry got to dwell on his thoughts any longer, the simulation was over and Nick turned to him with a big, beaming smile on his face.

“It’s over?” Harry asked, blinking.

Nick nodded. “It is,” he said. “The lads did brilliantly.”

Harry turned to the screen that was showing Liam, Zayn and Niall crossing the room back over to each other. Nick got up out of his chair and tapped Harry on the shoulder so he would follow. Harry scrambled out of his chair and followed Nick back to the simulation room. He shifted awkwardly behind Nick as Nick praised his friends at length about their tactic and skills. He felt bad for missing the entire thing, too lost in his own thoughts to have even seen anything at all. 

“Alright, class dismissed,” Nick said with a smile. He clapped each of the boys on the shoulder as they left. Harry glanced once more at Nick’s smiling face before he followed his friends down the corridor.

“Nick’s awfully happy today,” Harry said when they stepped into the lift together. 

“Yeah, he is,” Liam agreed with a nod.

“Your simulation was over pretty quickly, too,” Harry added.

“I thought that, too,” Zayn said. “It gives us the rest of the afternoon off, though, so I’m good. I’ve got exams to prepare for.”

Liam groaned. “Don’t remind me,” he said, leaning into Zayn’s touch. Zayn slung his arm low around Liam’s waist and from the slight jolt of Liam’s body, Harry figured that Zayn had grabbed at his arse. Liam grinned and buried his face in Zayn’s neck. 

The lift stopped on their floor and the three boys headed straight for the showers, leaving Harry lagging behind. He wandered into his room and sat down on the bed, going over the afternoon in his mind. He came back to Nick saying that Harry had a shield around his mind and paused, biting his lip.

Harry got up off the bed and walked into Zayn and Liam’s room to wait for them. He flopped down on Zayn’s bed and picked up the book that was left on Zayn’s bedside table to read while he waited. He didn’t have to wait long but it was clear he was interrupting something when Liam and Zayn all but stumbled into the room, their hands all over each other as they kissed. 

“Harry!” Liam exclaimed upon seeing him.

“Sorry, I’ll go,” he said, getting up off Zayn’s bed. 

“No, you can stay,” Liam said quickly. 

Harry looked between Liam and Zayn. He shook his head. “No, it’s alright,” he said. “I’ll leave.”

Liam opened his mouth to object but Zayn got there faster. “What’s wrong?” he asked, pulling at Liam so they were sitting on Liam’s bed. 

Harry bit his lip and sat back down. “It’s just something Nick said.”

“Well?” Zayn prompted.

“He said something about me having a shield on my mind,” Harry started slowly. It still didn’t make sense to him. “And that he thought with Louis gone, the shield wouldn’t be there, either.”

Zayn and Liam shared twin looks of confusion. “You have a shield on your mind?” Liam repeated. 

Harry nodded. “According to Nick, I do.”

Liam hummed to himself. “That’s odd.”

“The only thing I can think of,” Harry started, “is that Louis is still somehow keeping this shield around my mind, despite the fact that he isn’t here anymore.”

“It sounds like it,” Zayn replied. 

“That means he still cares, right?” Harry asked softly. “He still cares about me, even though he left me?” Tears pricked the backs of his eyes and he blinked to get rid of them. Harry brought his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them. 

“ _Harry_ ,” Liam said, getting up off the bed to close the distance between them. “I don’t doubt for a second that Louis still cares about you.”

Zayn joined him on the other side. “Lou’s head over heels for you,” he added. “Anyone could see that, even when you couldn’t.”

Harry sniffed. “Then why did he leave me?” 

“I don’t know,” Liam said softly. “I really don’t know.”

Harry closed his eyes and let himself be pulled into Liam’s arms for a hug. He slumped against his hard chest and tried not to cry everywhere. He failed. Zayn settled on his other side and wrapped an arm around his middle. Harry let out a shaky breath and hiccupped through his tears. 

“Sorry,” he mumbled a while later. 

“What for?” Liam asked.

“For ruining your afternoon,” Harry replied. “I know you were going to spend some time together.”

“We can spend time together later,” Zayn said. He ran his hand through Harry’s hair, his fingers pressing into Harry’s scalp with the pressure that he liked. “You’re our friend, Haz, we’re here for you.”

“Thanks,” Harry said wetly. He sniffed again and wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand. 

“Do you want to stay here tonight?” Liam offered.

Harry shook his head. “No,” he mumbled. “I’m alright in my room.”

“Okay,” Liam replied, kissing Harry’s temple. “We’re here if you need us.”

“I know,” Harry said. 

A while later, he left their room and headed back to his own. He sat down on Louis’ bed and ran his hand over the quilt cover, fingers tracing random patterns on it. He sighed and laid down. Louis’ pillow didn’t smell like him anymore and it made Harry’s chest pang. He buried his face in it anyway and breathed deeply, trying to get any lingering scent of Louis into his senses. He fell asleep like that a short while later, his mind drifting back to the thought that Louis was still protecting him, even from wherever he was.

~*~

The next few weeks brought about many changes that Harry didn’t necessarily like or care for. Their exams were fast approaching and Harry had his first one on a Wednesday. It was for English and Zayn had them studying together every night for it. Harry wanted to pass, he did, but he couldn’t bring himself to worry that much over it.

Nightmares still plagued him every single night but instead of Louis brutally dying in them, in the last week Louis had been saving everyone from some hellish creature that was intent on killing everyone in its path. They left Harry feeling drained. 

After the first week of solid nightmares, Harry stopped bringing them up in his therapy sessions. He could see the strange look in Doctor Simmons’ eyes as Harry told her about them. Harry figured what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her. He dealt with it on his own, by writing them down in the back of his journal. He had filled pages upon pages of it since Louis had left. Inane things mostly. Things that he wanted Louis to know when he came back. His dreams, his thoughts and feelings all went into the journal. It was better than therapy for him, Harry felt, at times. He could get it all out in a healthy way and tuck it into his drawer when he was done.

The others had stopped sleeping with him as well. Harry minded that the most. It was lonely but he didn’t want them to worry and to feel obliged to stay with him. He especially didn’t want them waking in the middle of the night after Harry had had a nightmare. He didn’t want to put them through that. Louis always knew the right words to say and the right places to touch on Harry’s body to get him to calm down after a nightmare. None of the others knew that. He couldn’t fault them for it, of course as they weren’t privy to that information, but he didn’t want to burden them any more than he already had. 

What had seemed the strangest of all was how utterly happy Nick looked all of the time. He had heard rumours form the younger students that Nick had found himself another job somewhere and he was just waiting until the school year ended before leaving. Some students said that it paid really, really well and that’s why he was leaving. Other students said that Nick had come into some kind of inheritance after a family member had died, especially with the flashy knew Porsche he was seen driving into the school grounds. It was odd to Harry. He didn’t really know that much about Nick’s life but he didn’t think he could ever be happy over someone’s death. It just didn’t seem right. 

Niall had laughed when Harry had said that Nick’s behaviour seemed odd. 

“He’s probably getting shagged regularly,” Niall had replied. He clapped Harry on the shoulder with a grin. “Something that you obviously haven’t experienced.”

That comment had stung and had left Harry in a sour mood for the remainder of the day. 

It wasn’t just the happy mood and the flashy car that had Harry suspicious – it was the fact that Nick kept disappearing for hours on end, only to return even happier than he had been when he had left. Harry had never seen Nick this happy before and it made him curious. He decided to keep a close eye on Nick, after that. He didn’t care how creepy it sounded, there was something odd going on and he wanted to know what it was. He couldn’t tell the boys, either. He didn’t want them thinking that he was going crazy or obsessing over something stupid. He didn’t want to see the looks of pity on their face when they would undoubtedly say that he was reaching and that he was just obsessing over Nick to fill the void that Louis had left. It wasn’t like that at all. He knew there was something bigger going on, he just didn’t know _what_. 

The weekend before his first exam, Gemma had called. She said that she’d received a text message from Zayn about Louis’ leaving and she wanted to see how he was. Harry had tried his hardest not to cry during their conversation but it proved to be harder than he expected. He had told her about the simulation training incident and how Louis had just disappeared after. He explained his suspicion about Louis leaving to be with his biological father, even though he hadn’t ever spoken of him before. 

Gemma had listened to him as he spilled out his worries and she commented in the appropriate places. It made Harry feel better, despite the fact that he had to tell her he wasn’t sure if Louis would be attending the wedding or not. She told him that she wasn’t going to change the seating plan just yet and Harry had felt a rush of affection for his sister. He wished that she was there with him to soothe him and give him rational answers like big sisters were supposed to do. After Harry had hung up from Gemma, he had fallen into a fitful sleep. He wished that Louis could come back to him so that he could get a decent night’s sleep. 

Most nights found Harry in bed with that day’s newspaper in his lap, wearing one of Louis’ leftover shirts or jogging bottoms. Harry had grown since Louis had left, so the jogging bottoms didn’t fit properly. They showed off his ankles and he couldn’t help but think that Louis would have appreciated that. He still found it odd that the rest of Louis’ belongings hadn’t been collected and a part of Harry hoped that it was because Louis was going to come back and collect them himself. Harry didn’t mention it to anyone, lest they take Louis’ things away. He had become quite good at keeping things to himself – yet another thing that he wasn’t used to doing but had to for the sake of his sanity.

There had been no discoveries or new information revealed about the missing crown jewels since the day they had been stolen. Harry would scour each newspaper for hints and clues, for _something_ that would tell him what he wanted to know. He wasn’t sure exactly _why_ he was so obsessed with finding what had happened but he felt like he needed to be. It was harder to keep that from the boys, especially when they had seen the newspaper clippings littering Harry’s carefully made bed. He had ran out of desk space and his bed was big enough to lay things out, so he had. Liam had given him a sad look when he saw the clippings for the first time but Harry had studiously ignored him. Liam could look at him with pity all he wanted. Harry knew that he was connected to this _somehow_. There was no point in trying to explain it to the others, he knew they wouldn’t understand it at all.

It wasn’t until after the last of Harry’s exams on the Thursday that he figured something out. Something that changed his entire perspective of _everything_. 

He opened the newspaper in the common room, after his exam, only to see that yet another bank robbery had taken place, along with a prison breakout. He read through each article twice, committing the most important details to memory. He had the paper propped open when Nick had walked by. 

“Doing a bit of light reading, hey, Haz?” 

Harry looked up to see Nick perch on the arm of the arm chair he was sitting in. “Yeah,” he said, closing the paper over. The headline glared up at them and Nick plucked the paper from his hands. 

“Hmm,” Nick hummed. “One of my friends was in that prison.”

“Really?” Harry asked. 

Nick nodded and passed the newspaper back to Harry. “Lucky for him if he gets out, isn’t it?”

Harry nodded awkwardly. “Yeah,” he mumbled. He didn’t think it was great at all. People who were in prison were there for a reason, he thought. He didn’t think people breaking out would be a good thing at _all_.

“Anyway,” Nick said. “I came to tell you that you did _brilliantly_ on your exam this morning!”

Harry smiled. “Thanks,” he replied.

Nick patted his shoulder twice before getting up. “Don’t tell the others that I let you know, okay?” He winked at Harry and Harry nodded. “Right, well, I must be off. Got things to do and exams to mark.”

“Bye,” Harry said and Nick wandered off, a spring in his step that Harry hadn’t noticed before. He turned back to the newspaper and looked at the date and the time of the robbery and prison break out. He thought back to what he had done those days and stopped when his mind landed on when he had spotted Nick leaving the school. 

Harry fumbled for the pages again and scanned over them, his heart picking up speed in his chest as his mind connected the dots. He scrambled out of his chair and raced up the stairs, too impatient to wait for the lift. By the time he reached the sixth floor, his breathing was laboured and his heart pounded against his ribs. 

He all but fell into his bedroom, pushing the door open with haste. He stopped at the bed and picked up an article at random. He crossed the room to where he kept his journal and flipped it open to the date that coincided with the newspaper. The dates matched. Harry bit his lip as he plucked another article from the bed and turned the pages in his journal until he found the date. It matched perfectly as well. He picked up another, and another, eyes widening when they all matched perfectly. 

Harry’s head swam and he sat down on the floor, clutching his journal in one hand and the newspaper clipping in the other. 

It all connected. 

It all connected in ways that Harry never dreamed it would. He dropped his gaze to the article in his hand again and then looked at his journal entry. Sitting there, in his own script was the exact time that he noticed Nick leaving the school. It wasn’t even an hour later that that specific robbery had happened. 

“It can’t be,” he whispered to himself in the quiet of his bedroom. Harry set the items down on the floor and pushed his fringe off his face. There was no way that he could be right, could there?

He hastily stood and grabbed as many articles as he could and stuffed them between the pages of his journal. Harry left his bedroom quickly and knocked on the door of Liam and Zayn’s room. When they didn’t answer, he knocked on Niall’s door as well but he didn’t answer either. With a huff, he headed for the stairs, hoping that he would see one of them on the way down. 

Niall was the first person he spotted and he was playing a game of chess with Ashley in one of the common rooms. He all but tripped over his own feet in his haste to get to them. 

“It’s Nick!” he exclaimed loudly, making the three other occupants in the room turn to stare at him. He flushed and ducked his head a little before turning his attention back to Ashley and Niall.

“What’s Nick?” Ashley asked as she looked up at him.

Harry opened up his journal and pulled the first article out. He opened the corresponding page of his journal and thrust it at her.

“…What am I looking at, Harry?” Ashley asked. Niall got up off his chair and scooted beside Ashley so he could look over her shoulder at Harry’s journal.

“Look at the dates and the times on my journal to the one in the article,” Harry ushered. “It’s right there! Nick left the mansion and within two hours _every single time_ , there was something that happened. A robbery, the prison break out, all of it!”

Ashley’s brow furrowed as she set down article after article on the floor next to her and flipped through his journal for the coordinating dates. She reached the last one and Harry looked at her expectantly. 

“Well?” he prompted.

“I don’t see it,” Niall said with a shrug as he looked up at Harry. Harry shot Ashley a desperate look.

“I’m with Niall,” she agreed. “This doesn’t state anything, Harry. It’s just you documenting when Nick leaves the mansion and the articles you’ve collected. There are millions of people living in the United Kingdom, it could have been any one of them – this is just a coincidence.”

Harry felt hurt. His friends didn’t believe him.

He reached down to pick up all of the articles that Ashley had put down on the floor and he snatched his journal from her. “It’s not a coincidence,” he muttered as he left the room, Ashley and Niall calling after him but neither of them following.

Harry huffed and he rode the lift back up to his floor, feeling dejected. He reached Liam and Zayn’s room and pushed the door open to wait for them when they got back. He made himself comfortable on Zayn’s bed, pulling Zayn’s pillow into his lap to cuddle. He knew he should have stayed downstairs and explained it all to Niall and Ashley but he didn’t want to have to explain it to someone who was dubious – he wanted someone to just believe him straight away and not think he was making it all up in his head.

A while later, the door finally opened and Liam wandered in. He started when he spotted Harry but gave him a smile. “Hey, Harry,” he said. “What are you doing in here?”

“Can… Would you look at something for me?” he asked.

Liam nodded and sat on the bed across from Harry. Harry handed him one of the articles first and then opened his journal to the corresponding page. “What am I looking at here?”

Harry tapped his finger on the top of the journal where the date was printed. “This date,” he started, “coincides with this date.” He reached over and pointed to the article’s date and time of the printed crime.

Liam frowned in concentration. “Okay,” he said. “What else?”

“Every single one of these articles has a date and time of a crime that was committed,” Harry said, scooping up the loose articles from his lap. “I’ve documented every time that I’ve been aware of Nick leaving the mansion. They all coincide. Every single one of them.”

“Give me a moment, yeah?” Liam asked and Harry nodded as he handed over the rest of the articles for Liam to go through. It took him a few long minutes but afterwards, he looked up at Harry with a sceptical look on his face. “Harry…” 

“ _Don’t_ tell me that I’m reaching here, Liam,” Harry said. “It _fits_ , you know it does. Logically it all works out and my feelings tell me that I’m right.”

Liam sighed and ran a hand through his floppy light brown hair. “You’re not far off,” he commented. 

Harry sighed a little in relief. “Good.”

“So what do you plan to do with all of this, then?” Liam asked.

Harry paused. “I’m going to follow Nick,” he replied. “He’s disappeared again right now, but if there is an article tomorrow, I’ll know it’s him. The next time he leaves the mansion, I’m going to follow him.”

Liam sucked his bottom lip between his teeth. “Harry, do you think that’s a good idea?”

“I don’t care,” Harry said. “Look at the details, Li, there is _no way_ that Nick could have done that all on his own. He only has that one power of understanding people’s abilities, right?” Liam nodded. “So he’s either found someone who can get in there undetected or…” he trailed off as his mind supplied an answer that made his stomach churn unpleasantly. 

“Or?” Liam prompted.

“It’s Louis,” Harry breathed. “He… He has Louis!” He stood up quickly and looked back down at the articles. He ran a hand through his hair and started pacing the floor. Liam stood up and stopped Harry by placing his hands on Harry’s shoulders.

“Whoa, what?” he asked.

Harry blinked at him. “Nick can’t have got into any of those places undetected, right?” Liam gave him a hesitant nod. “Louis has the power of invisibility. He can make other things invisible as well. Nick must have Louis!”

“Harry,” Liam said, his tone wary. “Now I think you’re jumping to conclusions.”

“Why?” Harry asked. “Why do you think I’m jumping to conclusions, Liam? Because I _knew_ Louis. I _know_ Louis and he didn’t just _leave me_ without a proper reason. He _never_ spoke about his biological father and _no one_ has sent for the rest of his things! He still has clothes and books and everything still here in our room. He didn’t just leave me over a stupid simulation gone wrong. He _didn’t_.”

“But he did,” Liam said softly. “And if you’re right… If Louis did go with Nick, then he’s _helping_ Nick commit crimes, Haz. If he is, then he isn’t the boy you thought you knew.”

“Don’t,” Harry ground out. “It’s not like that. He’s my boyfriend, Louis wouldn’t ever do that. He hated Nick.”

Liam sighed and ran a hand through his hair again. “I don’t see any other logical explanation though, Harry. Either he left with his biological father or he left with Nick and is helping Nick to commit _massive_ crimes across the country.”

Harry sighed, deflated. He knew there was something he was missing but he just didn’t know what. He slumped back onto the bed and picked up his journal, running his fingers over the ink on the page from where he had written. 

Liam joined him on the bed and slung an arm around Harry’s shoulders. “I’m sorry, Harry,” he said. “I know neither of those outcomes are one that you were hoping for but that’s it. Those are the only options.”

Harry stood again, Liam’s arm dropping from his shoulder. He clutched his journal in his hands and glanced down at Liam. “I’m going to figure it out,” he said firmly. “I’m going to follow Nick the next time he leaves the school and I’m going to see if it leads me to Louis. You can come, if you want, but either way, I’m going. I’m going to bring my boyfriend back home if it’s the last thing I do.”

He scooped up the articles and ignored Liam’s protests as he left the room once more. He didn’t care if they believed him or not, Harry’s gut was telling him that he was heading in the right direction. He just needed to follow his instincts and Louis would be back home. He was sure of it.

~*~

Harry watched Nick like a hawk the next day. He watched him as they had breakfast and he watched Nick as they had lunch and whenever he could in between. Nick hadn’t noticed, thankfully, and Harry kept watching him. He missed his mouth a few times with his soup at lunch time, splashing himself with the broth but he didn’t care. He needed to keep his attention and his focus on Nick as much as possible.

It was shortly after lunch that Harry saw Nick flip his car keys around his finger and leave the dining hall. He left everything sitting on the table as it was and followed Nick. Nick headed for the garage and Harry took a breath. This was it, he thought. Nick was leaving the school and he was going to lead Harry to Louis, he could feel it.

Harry slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out Zayn’s car keys. He held them out to push the button to unlock the car when suddenly the keys were swiped from his hand. He looked up to see Niall skidding to a halt, the keys in his own hand. “Niall, give them back.”

“Nope,” Niall replied, twirling the keys on his finger. 

“Niall, c’mon, I need to do this,” Harry said emphatically.

Niall just shook his head. 

“You’re not going alone,” Liam’s voice said from behind Harry. He turned around, coming face to face with his friends. 

“I thought you all didn’t believe me?” Harry asked, looking between his three friends.

“You feel strongly about this, yeah?” Zayn asked and Harry nodded. “Then we’re coming with you. Whether or not we believe you is irrelevant. We’re a team, we do this together.”

Harry glanced between them again, seeing the same expression on all of their faces. “I’m driving,” he said, holding his hands out for the keys. They floated into his palm from Niall’s powers and he unlocked the car. They all clambered in and Harry hastily drove out of the garage. He just hoped that Nick hadn’t managed to get too far. 

They spotted Nick up ahead and Liam urged Harry to keep a safe distance from him so that Nick wouldn’t see them following. Harry gripped the steering wheel tightly. He couldn’t lose sight of Nick at all. He didn’t want this trip to be a waste. He needed to follow Nick and find Louis, even if his friends didn’t believe him. He couldn’t even begin to process what Liam had said about Louis helping Nick. He wouldn’t believe it unless Louis told him himself. There was no way that Louis, _his_ Louis, was helping Nick commit crimes across the United Kingdom. Especially not when Harry knew how much Louis disliked Nick. Louis was a good person and Harry clung to that notion. He knew Louis and he knew that he wasn’t capable of those things. 

They drove for a while, taking every turn that Nick did as they made their way through some suburbs. He thought he lost sight of Nick’s Porsche a few times but easily caught it again a moment later. Each time he breathed a sigh of relief. There was no room for mistakes at all. 

After a long while, Nick stopped outside of a pretty non-descript house. Harry slowly idled at the kerb as far back as he could but close enough that he could see Nick. Nick got out of the car and Harry heard the beeps as he locked it with the remote. He hadn’t spotted them at all, thankfully. Nick approached the front door of the house and took out a key to unlock it before he stepped inside. Harry pulled off his seat belt in an instant and climbed out of Zayn’s car, making a beeline for the house Nick went into. 

Liam’s hand grabbed Harry’s own before he could get much farther and Harry stopped in his tracks. “For all we know, this is Nick’s house,” he started. “Do you even have a plan, Harry?”

Harry looked back at the house. Every instinct in his body was screaming at him to follow. A moment later, the front door of the house opened again and Nick stepped out, smiling to himself. Harry’s eyes widened and he scrambled backwards as quickly and as silently as he could so that Nick couldn’t see them. The others ducked down as well and a moment later, the roar of the Porsche filled the street as Nick sped off away from them. Harry let out a shaky breath and stood up again.

“I’m going in,” Harry said. “I don’t care _how_ but I’m going in.”

“It’s a good thing we’re all wearing our X-Men suits, isn’t it?” Niall piped up with a grin. He shrugged off the jacket he had been wearing and threw it into the backseat of the car. Harry bit back a smile and did the same. He had been wearing his X-Men suit all day as a precaution. He was glad they were tailored to their own bodies so that he didn’t feel uncomfortable at all during the day. Zayn and Liam took off their jackets and t-shirts as well, leaving them in the car. 

“God, I hope no one was watching,” Liam muttered as he closed the back door. 

“Well, they copped an eyeful of how great my arse looks in this if they did,” Niall said, running his hand over his backside with a cheeky grin.

Liam rolled his eyes at Niall and Harry ducked his head with a small smile. “Okay, what’s your plan? We can’t exactly just break in? That could be Nick’s house for all we know. Or just someone he was visiting.”

“He had a key,” Harry pointed out.

“Fine, he had a key,” Liam repeated. “What else are we going to do then? We can’t just walk in there and have a look around.”

Harry glanced back at the house and started for it, the others hurriedly following him. “Liam, you’re going to use your heat vision to see if Louis’ inside.”

“And if that doesn’t work?” Liam asked.

“Then Niall can use his powers to manipulate the lock into opening,” Harry replied with a shrug. “It’s not breaking in if nothing is broken.”

“I’m down for that,” Niall said with a nod at Harry. 

“I’m going to give us some cloud coverage,” Zayn interrupted. “Because we sure as hell don’t need anyone peeking in on us.” He turned his face skywards and moments later, thick, dark clouds rolled in, creating an ominous atmosphere. 

“Let’s go,” Harry said. They approached the house and Harry nodded at Liam who turned his gaze to the house. Liam’s irises went completely red as his heat vision activated. His head moved as he looked around and suddenly stopped.

“There’s definitely someone in there,” Liam stated. “Let me see if I can recognise the heat signature.”

Harry nodded and waited somewhat impatiently for Liam’s powers to work. Liam turned to Zayn and he nodded once. Zayn stepped in front of Harry and put his hands on Harry’s shoulders. 

“What?” he asked.

“It’s Louis,” Zayn replied. 

Harry made to step forwards but electricity surged through his shoulders where Zayn had a tight grip on them. He staggered a moment before his body started absorbing the energy. He shot Zayn a dirty look but Zayn just leaned over and kissed his cheek. 

“There,” he said softly. “Now you’re strong enough to deal with this.”

Harry looked at him, confusion written all over his face but Zayn just gave him a small smile and Harry realised that Zayn was doing him a favour. He didn’t think that Harry was strong enough to deal with whatever was waiting for them behind the door. He didn’t know whether he hated Zayn for pre-empting his feelings or commend him for it.

“Door’s unlocked,” Niall said cheerily. “Let’s say we take this inside, yeah?”

Liam stepped inside the house first and Harry caught Zayn’s hand in his own, giving it a squeeze before following Liam. Zayn closed the door behind them once they were all inside and flipped the lock.

“Where is he?” Harry asked desperately. 

“This way,” Liam said, leading them through the house. They came to a room with a closed door and Niall used his powers to unlock it. A sense of dread pooled in Harry’s stomach as he waited for the door to swing open.

“Shit,” Niall said, raising a hand out to seemingly touch thin air. “That’s a fucking strong arse force field.”

Harry pushed passed his friends and put a hand on it. He reared back a fist and hoped that Louis’ force fields were still able to let him in. His fist connected with the force field and there was a loud crack as it reacted with Harry’s powers. Harry stumbled backwards and took a deep breath. At least it didn’t render him unconscious this time, he thought. He swung at it again, his fist connecting with the invisible force field each time with a red glow. After half a dozen hits, the force field gave way and Harry toppled into the room, landing on his hands and knees. He felt absolutely exhausted and he took a few deep breaths before shakily getting up. He glanced around the room and saw Louis sitting in an arm chair in the far corner. 

Harry’s heart plummeted as he scurried over to Louis. He dropped to his knees in front of Louis and took one of Louis’ hands in his own. Louis’ eyes were open but completely unfocused. His normally gorgeous blue eyes looked utterly dead and it scared Harry. “Lou?” he asked softly but Louis was unresponsive. “Lou, babycakes?” he tried again. “ _Louis_.”

“Harry, we should get out of here,” Liam said worriedly. 

“He isn’t responding, Li,” Harry said worriedly. “What’s wrong with him?”

“Let’s just get him out to the car and get him back to the mansion. Doctor Peters can figure out what’s wrong with him and fix it, alright?” Liam said.

Harry nodded and he stood. Niall was at his side a moment later and they both lifted Louis’ body from the chair. Harry securely wrapped his arms around Louis’ middle and he and Niall shifted Louis’ weight to get him settled between them so they could walk properly without dropping him.

“C’mon, let’s go,” Zayn said urgently. 

Harry nodded at Zayn and he and Niall started to leave the room. They walked down the corridor and back towards the entrance. 

“Well. I knew those clouds weren’t nature made,” Nick’s voice said, startling Harry. He glanced over at Nick, who stood in between them and the exit of the house. Harry gripped Louis tighter reflexively. “And exactly _where_ do you think you’re going with Louis, lads?”

Liam looked back at them and Harry swore he could see Liam’s eyes slowly turning red. He snapped his gaze back to Nick, unable to focus on anything else right then.

“We’re taking him _home_ ,” Harry said. “So get out of the way, Nick.”

Nick tutted and shook his head, a slow, terrifyingly scary grin crossing his face. “I don’t think so,” he started. “You see, Louis’ here with me by choice. Aren’t you, Louis?”

Louis started to move in Harry’s grasp and he lowered himself to the floor, walking over to Nick’s side. His eyes still looked dead to Harry and that gave him a sliver of hope. 

“Yes, Nick,” Louis muttered monotonously. 

Nick grinned and slung an arm around Louis’ shoulders. “We’re quite good friends, you see,” he started. “And you’re kind of crashing the party.”

Harry’s hands balled into fists at his side. Nick was lying, that much he knew. “We’re not leaving without him.”

“You think that now,” Nick started. “But you’re wrong. Louis and I have a good thing going here, you see. You wouldn’t want to break that up, would you?” He ran a finger down Louis’ cheek and Harry wanted to throw up from the sight. Louis stood there, unresponsive still, just taking the touch. It was wrong.

“Niall,” Harry muttered. “Do something.”

Niall nodded and suddenly disappeared from sight as he super sped around the room. A force field suddenly produced and blasted Niall backwards. He landed in the living room area with a sickening crunch and Harry saw Zayn move to go help him. 

“There’s no way that you’re going to win this,” Nick said. “So you may as well just leave now before one of you gets injured or killed.”

“No,” Liam said, his tone hard. He hurled a fire ball at Nick but Louis’ force field quickly erected itself over them both. Harry had no idea what to do. It was like Louis was _protecting_ Nick. He shouldn’t be protecting Nick, Louis should be protecting _them_. They were his friends, the ones who knew him the best, not Nick. Nick wasn’t meant to be a part of anything they were. 

“Louis,” Harry pleaded. “Stop. Come home with us.”

“When are you going to get it, curly?” Louis said in a dull tone of voice. “I’m staying with Nick and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

Nick grinned widely and Harry glanced between them. Nick’s fingers were digging into the back of Louis’ neck pretty tightly and he wondered if that was some kind of connection between them. He had always thought that Nick only had one power but Nick was a class four mutant as well – which meant he _had_ to have another power or two for him to be classified as that. His body reacted before he did and Harry tackled Nick to the ground before any of them realised what had happened. It broke the connection between Nick and Louis, which is what Harry wanted. He just hoped that the connection was broken long enough for them to get out of there.

Nick struggled underneath him and Harry let out a squawk as Nick tried to overpower him. He gripped Nick’s wrists in his fists and squeezed. A moment later, a hand came down on the back of Harry’s hair and tugged hard. He yelped as Liam yanked Harry off Nick and threw him to the side. 

“Liam, _what_?” Harry spluttered. He looked at Liam whose eyes also looked dead and Liam’s fist connected with Harry’s jaw a moment later. Harry’s body barely had time to activate his powers to absorb the blow but he did. He stumbled backwards and rubbed at his jaw where it smarted a little bit. He looked between Louis and Liam and realised that Nick had a hand on both of their shoulders. 

“See what I mean?” Nick said, his voice laced with disdain. “You can still leave, Harry. Before more bad things happen.”

Harry shook his head. “I’m not leaving without my friends.”

“Oh, but you see, you are,” Nick started. “Because now I have Liam and his _beautiful_ firepower on my side and there is _no way_ that even your body could absorb that much fire. Or do you want to test that theory?”

Liam’s hand suddenly had a fire ball sitting in it, growing in size with every passing second. He hurled it at Harry a second later and Harry’s body absorbed it. He knew that he would need the energy for later if they were going to get out of this.

“Why are you doing this?” Harry asked, trying to stall for time. He didn’t know what Zayn and Niall were doing or if they were still in control of their minds, but he needed to find out and fast.

“Because I can,” Nick replied, sounding positively bored. “And it’s fun.”

Harry looked between Nick, Liam and Louis and nodded. He stepped forwards like he was going to leave the house when he threw a punch at Liam, knocking him out. A force field came up, protecting Nick and Louis from Harry but he hit it anyway. It wobbled underneath the force of his hit and he kept his gaze on Louis the entire time, hoping that Louis could see him. 

Eventually the force field dropped and for a brief moment, Harry thought he could see Louis looking back at him before the moment disappeared. 

“Zayn, Niall, let’s go!” Harry called out. “ _Now_!” 

“Let’s just take a moment,” Nick said. “Because there’s _one_ of you and there’s _five_ of us. The odds aren’t exactly in your favour, are they?”

“What do you mean?” Harry found himself asking.

“Louis, darling,” Nick started. He reached out and stroked a hand through Louis’ hair. “Break your left wrist for me.”

Louis raised his hands in front of himself and his right hand closed over his left wrist. The snapping sound of bones made Harry feel nauseated but he couldn’t tear his gaze away. Louis’ face remained blank and he didn’t even flinch when his bones broke. Harry let out a broken sob.

“What have you done to him?” Harry whispered, stepping closer to Louis.

“Uh-uh,” Nick tutted, his hand going to the back of Louis’ neck once again. “Don’t get closer, Harry, or I’ll have him break something of yours.”

Harry tore his gaze away from Louis and back to Nick. “Don’t,” he said. “Please don’t.”

Nick grinned. “I do love it when you beg.”

A second later, something hurtled itself at Nick’s head and knocked him to the ground. Harry looked over at the direction the object came from and he saw Zayn standing there, chest heaving. 

“Let’s go,” he said. Harry nodded. “Is Niall…?”

“A bit wobbly but I’m alright,” Niall said, moving to stand next to Zayn. 

“Get Liam out to the car,” Harry instructed. “I’ll take Louis. His wrist is broken.”

Zayn nodded and moved to pick Liam up off the floor where he still was knocked out. Harry carefully wrapped his arm around Louis so he could guide him towards the exit but a moment later, Louis turned on him and shoved him off with his unbroken hand. He stumbled backwards into Niall and they both toppled over. Nick stepped back next to Louis, looking rumpled and angered. 

“See, the best thing about this,” Nick started, “is that I can get you guys to all turn on each other. Not you, though, Harry. No matter _how_ many times I’ve tried, Louis _still won’t_ drop the shield he has around _your_ mind. Your friends, however, are very easily manipulated and, well, let’s just say, I’m going to have fun watching this.”

Harry’s eyes widened as Liam stood up, his hands alight with fire and he started pelting fireballs at Harry, who absorbed every single one of them. His entire arms were engulfed with flames and a moment later, Niall sped over to Liam. He ran around Liam in a circle and Harry could see that Liam was suffocating from the lack of oxygen that Niall’s speed was causing. Liam collapsed to his knees on the floor, gasping for breath. 

Zayn shot lightning bolts at Niall and he dodged every single one of them easily with his speed. Harry looked between his friends and Nick, who had a sadistic smile on his face. He shook his head and pushed his way between Niall and Zayn. He got knocked back with Niall’s speed and he landed on the ground with a thud. He winced and rubbed his back where he landed and got up again. He needed to get his friends to stop hurting each other. Their attention turned to him and a moment later, the three of them were all advancing on him. Niall whipped out his metal ball and shackled Harry’s feet to the ground, the chains digging deep into the floor. Zayn created an electrical storm cloud inside the house, above Harry’s head and lightning shot down from the cloud. Harry focused his powers to absorb it and the fire balls that Liam was throwing at him with a speed that Harry had never seen before. 

He winced as he felt his powers beginning to stretch, the ache building in his chest. Louis and Nick were still standing together, watching over the whole event. Harry closed his eyes and took a breath. He knew what he had to do but he didn’t want to do it. He didn’t want to be a monster like Nick was but there was no other choice. He was going to be killed in a matter of minutes if he didn’t act fast.

“Zayn,” he said softly. Zayn’s gaze slipped to him and he focused on Zayn’s emotions. Zayn stepped closer and his hand touched Harry’s own, creating a connection between them. He focused on getting Zayn’s emotions to control his powers and a moment later, the electrical storm stopped. Harry breathed heavily, overwhelmed with Zayn’s emotions mixed with his own. He could feel Zayn’s worry through their joined hands and the desire to break free of whatever hold Nick had over him. Harry hated that he was manipulating Zayn into doing what he wanted him to do but he knew there was no other way to stop it. He had to connect with his emotions to get Zayn to stop. He would have to do that with all of the boys. He was briefly thankful for the fact that their powers were connected to their emotions. He wasn’t sure what he would do otherwise. 

He turned to Niall next and he grasped Niall’s hand in his own, focusing Niall’s emotions so that he would unchain Harry from the floor. The shackles disappeared and Harry wriggled his feet. The blank look left Niall’s face and the life slowly flitted back into his eyes. He shot Harry an apologetic look but Harry shrugged it off. He knew they weren’t in control of what they were doing and he didn’t blame them.

Harry crossed the room to Liam next and the moment their hands touched, Liam let out a cry of pain. He stepped backwards and his entire body suddenly erupted with flames. Harry stepped back automatically to get away from the blaze. He had never seen Liam’s powers react like that before and he felt panic creeping up his throat as Liam’s entire body was quickly covered in fire. He glowed orange and Harry could barely even see Liam’s face through the hazy colour. Harry’s eyes widened and he stepped closer to Liam but Liam started hovering off the ground, like the fire was propelling him away from Harry. “Liam!” he yelled. “Turn it off!”

“I can’t!” Liam called back his voice sounding panicked.

“Zayn, douse him with water!” Harry instructed. A second later, Zayn inhaled deeply and Harry’s eyes widened as he watched Zayn exhale a long breath, the air that he had sucked in blowing at the flames that were covering Liam’s body. It gave off an icy swirl, the frost licking at Liam’s skin, extinguishing the fire. Harry made a note to ask Zayn about _that_ newfound ability when they weren’t in the middle of trying to save Louis and themselves from each other. 

“Where’s Louis?” Niall asked a moment later. Harry’s attention left Liam and Zayn and snapped back to Niall, his mind racing. He couldn’t see Louis at all. Or Nick either. 

Harry looked around and saw Nick and Louis heading towards the kitchen. He hastily followed him with Niall behind him and Niall sprinted after Nick, tackling him to the ground. He used his metal marble to shackle Nick’s hands and feet to the ground and he got back up.

Harry approached Louis who didn’t even flinch when Harry touched his shoulder. “Louis, please come back to me.”

“He won’t,” Nick spat. “He’s under my complete control.”

Harry snapped and all but leapt on top of Nick, hitting him as much as he could, wherever he could. Rage bubbled in his chest and Harry felt resistance at every hit. He knew without looking that Louis had some kind of force field around Nick that was close to his skin that was stronger than Harry expected. He didn’t care. He kept hitting Nick in hopes of breaking it. He needed to get Nick to stop whatever it was he was doing to Louis so Louis could be free to think for himself again. It broke his heart to see Louis so lifeless like that. It scared him beyond belief, as well, but he couldn’t focus on that – he needed to get Nick to stop the manipulation and fast. 

Nick wriggled underneath him, trying to get free and his jacket fell open in the process. A pen rolled out onto the floor and Harry stopped hitting Nick to look at it. It didn’t look like an ordinary pen. It looked different, somehow. He clicked the top and suddenly Louis screamed.

Harry scrambled off Nick and moved to Louis’ side where he had dropped to the floor, clutching his broken wrist. He shook all over and Harry held him as close as he dared. “Lou?” he whispered, scared.

“I… I…” Louis said shakily. 

Harry tilted Louis’ chin up so he could look at Louis’ face. He could see the deadness had gone from Louis’ eyes and he breathed a sigh of relief. He moved forwards so that he could hug Louis but a moment later, a metal chain wrapped itself around Harry’s neck and dragged him backwards. Nick was standing once again, his hand on the back of Niall’s neck and Niall had the metal from Nick’s shackles manipulated to a chain around Harry’s throat. He gasped for breath and tried to dig his fingers underneath the metal. He felt his body growing weak from lack of oxygen. 

The next moment a lot of things happened.

Liam and Zayn entered the kitchen. Liam threw a fireball at Nick whose concentration on Niall dropped as he ducked away from the burst of flame. The chain clattered to the floor and Harry swayed dangerously, his neck burning from the friction of the metal. Niall quickly grabbed Harry and kept him upright. 

Nick picked the pen up off the floor and before he could click the top, Zayn sent a lightning bolt at him, causing him to drop it.

Harry looked up as he saw Louis getting up off the floor. A force field wrapped itself around Louis’ wrist, stabilising it and a second later, a force field wrapped itself around Nick. Harry saw the look on Louis’ face and his eyes widened as he realised that Louis was literally trying to crush Nick’s body inside of the force field. He watched as Nick, unable to move an inch, tried to breathe but a force field appeared in front of his face, like a bubble and forced itself into Nick’s struggling mouth. Louis was going to kill Nick, Harry realised. He was going to kill him without even flinching.

Zayn shot a lightning bolt out at Louis, who deflected it easily with another force field. He did it again and again and each one, Louis deflected. Harry scrambled to his feet and he threw himself at Louis, knocking him to the ground. He pinned Louis’ wrists above his head, thankful that his broken one was encased in a force field still. Louis struggled underneath him for a moment and Harry let out a sob.

“Louis, stop, _please_ ,” he begged. “Don’t kill him.”

“Why not?” Louis ground out, tears pooling in the corners of his eyes, whether from frustration or pain, Harry wasn’t sure.

“Because that’s not you,” Harry whispered desperately. “You’re not a killer, you’re Louis. Beautiful, kind and loving _Louis_.”

Louis dropped the force field around Nick, who collapsed on the floor, clutching his throat, trying to breathe. Harry nodded at Liam who picked Nick up by the back of his shirt, hauling him to his feet. Niall turned his metal into handcuffs to handcuff Nick but he ducked out of the way. He backhanded Niall across the face with a hard hit and lunged at Louis, tackling him to the ground. Harry reacted immediately, hitting Nick’s back wherever he could reach. Nick’s hands closed around Louis’ throat and Louis struggled for breath. Nick shoved Harry off, hard, and he fell against the cupboards, wincing as his body made contact with them. 

Harry saw Liam and Zayn approaching Nick and Louis a second later but Louis let out a strangled cry and a force field blasted Nick across the room. His back collided with the wall and landed on the floor, on his front, with a sickening crunch. 

Harry scrambled across the kitchen floor to where Louis was. Angry red marks bloomed on his throat already and blood dripped from Louis’ nose. Harry let out a broken cry, wiping the blood away with a finger. He shook Louis but he didn’t respond. “Louis! Wake up!” he pleaded brokenly.

Zayn was at his side a moment later, putting one of his hands on Louis’ forehead, the other on his unbroken wrist. “He’s just knocked out,” he said. “Let’s get back to the mansion so Doctor Peters can fix him.”

Harry nodded and he scooped Louis’ motionless body up into his arms, tears running down his face. He made his way outside and blinked at the bright sunlight. He stopped at the car and unlocked it before getting Louis into the front passenger’s seat. He clipped Louis’ seat belt in and looked back to see Niall being carried by Liam and Nick being dragged along by Zayn’s air powers. 

A force field suddenly wrapped itself around Nick’s head and Harry snapped his attention back to Louis, who was still knocked out. Zayn reached out and touched the force field. 

“I think it’s protecting us,” Zayn said as he opened the boot. He all but threw Nick in there with his powers and slammed it shut before helping Liam, who was shaking pretty badly. They both got Niall buckled into the car and Harry hoped that he would wake soon. 

“Can we go now, please?” Liam asked. 

Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he replied, glancing at Louis, smiling slightly. “Let’s go home.”

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥
> 
> PS - one more to go. =(


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last one. This one is 18k, so at least it's lengthy enough to enjoy? More notes at the end (to avoid spoilers). ♥

Chapter Fourteen  
_Louis_  


An incessant beeping woke Louis. He groaned and scrunched his eyes closed, not ready to face the world yet. He could hear movement in the room and figured it was just Harry getting ready for class. He figured that he had a few more minutes of peace before Harry would wake him up with kisses across his face or by jumping on him and tickling him. There was no in between with Harry. Louis loved it, though.

The soft, steady puff of a breath against his neck made Louis frown. He cracked an eye open and looked down at Harry who was tucked into his side, his thick, curly hair dangerously close to Louis’ mouth. Louis yawned and lifted his hand to push Harry’s hair away from his lips. His fingers automatically carded through the locks, scratching at Harry’s scalp. He smiled to himself as he watched Harry sleeping. He couldn’t get over how beautiful Harry was. His red lips were parted, his breath tickling the skin of Louis’ neck. He pressed his fingers a little harder and Harry wriggled in his sleep, subconsciously trying to get closer to the pressure. Louis smiled and dropped a kiss to the top of Harry’s head.

“Good, you’re awake.”

Louis looked up to see Zayn standing next to his bed, a syringe in hand as he pushed the contents into the bag of IV fluids that was next to the bed. The tubes wound down around the pole and connected itself to the back of Louis’ hand. He blinked, confused. “What’s going on?” he asked.

Zayn ignored him for a moment and disposed of the syringe properly before he moved to stand next to Louis’ bed. It was only then that Louis realised he was in the medic wing. He looked around and spotted a machine that was connected to him as well, tracking his heartbeat. He looked down at the sticky pads that were pressed across his bare chest and he sighed. 

“Zayn,” he started, “what’s going on?”

Zayn picked up a chart and flipped it open. He quickly marked something on it and then perched on the edge of Louis’ bed next to his legs. “I think Doctor Peters is probably the best one to explain this to you.”

Louis frowned. “No, Zayn, you tell me,” he demanded.

“I can’t,” Zayn said. “I’m just in training – I’m not allowed to give you information this sensitive.”

Louis huffed. “…Wait, in training?” he asked, confused.

Zayn nodded. “I’m training to be a doctor. Or medic or nurse. One of them, at least.”

“Since _when_?” Louis asked. 

“A while now,” Zayn replied. “You missed a lot when you were away.”

Louis opened his mouth to ask another question when Harry stirred beside him. He smacked his lips together and made a noise that Louis positively didn’t think was adorable before he snuggled in closer to Louis, still fast asleep. “How long’s he been here for?” he asked instead.

Zayn shot them a fond look. “All week,” he replied. “He hasn’t left your side. Niall had to shove him in the shower a few nights ago but he refuses to leave your side in case you wake up.” Zayn set the chart back down on the end of Louis’ bed. “I’ll go get Doctor Peters and let her know that you’re awake.”

Louis hummed and turned his attention back to Harry. He brushed his thumb over Harry’s plump bottom lip and watched as Harry sucked the lip into his mouth, his teeth automatically coming down on it. He leaned closer and brushed his lips against Harry’s own. Harry didn’t even respond. Louis smiled to himself and gently kissed Harry again. He kissed his way across the bridge of Harry’s nose, over his cheekbones and to his eyebrows. He gently kissed both of Harry’s eyelids and then his lips once more. Harry’s eyes slowly fluttered open, a sleepy, happy smile on his face. Louis gently swiped his thumb over the mound of Harry’s cheekbone as he cupped Harry’s face. Harry’s eyes widened and he all but pounced on Louis, wrapping his arms tightly around Louis. His body wracked with sobs and Louis held Harry closer, burying his face in the crook of Harry’s neck. 

“What’s wrong?” Louis asked softly. 

Harry choked on his sobs and shook his head, his hair tickling Louis’ face. They stayed like that for a while, Harry clinging onto Louis tightly. Louis inhaled deeply, letting Harry’s familiar scent wash over him. He kept his eyes closed and rubbed soothing circles with his hands on Harry’s back. Eventually, Harry stopped shaking enough to pull back. 

“Hi, love,” Louis whispered softly. “You alright?”

Harry nodded, his curly hair falling into his eyes. He pushed it back with his free hand and sniffed pathetically. “I thought I lost you,” he whispered brokenly.

Before Louis could ask what he meant, Doctor Peters came into the room with Zayn. She picked up Louis’ chart and made a humming noise before she took out her stethoscope to listen to his chest. Harry held tightly onto Louis’ hand as Doctor Peters poked and prodded at him.

“Your vitals are stable,” Doctor Peters said. She turned to Zayn and gave him a brief smile. “You did really well here, Zayn. You should be proud.”

Zayn visibly straightened at the praise and he nodded once, forever showing the outward ‘cool’ persona that Louis knew he would. A hint of a smile played at Zayn’s lips and Louis couldn’t help but wonder just what exactly was going on.

“So,” Louis started, “can anyone tell me what happened?”

“What’s your last memory?” Doctor Peters asked, pulling out a stool from next to the wall so that she could sit down on it. She crossed one leg over the other and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose, her pen poised over the clipboard resting on her knee. “In detail, if you can.”

Louis nodded. “Um,” he said. “Oh! Harry was trying to pinch my bum before we went into the simulation training with Nick. Did…” he looked at Harry who visibly flinched at Nick’s name. “Did something happen in the training room?” 

Doctor Peters took a breath and stood up. She pulled another stool out and Zayn sat down next to her on it. Both of them looked scarily intimidating and Louis couldn’t help but wonder just when Zayn and Doctor Peters had managed to get so close.

“Louis, that was more than a month ago,” Doctor Peters started.

“What?” Louis asked. “A _month_? Did something happen for me to be knocked out for _that long_?”

“There was an incident in the training room,” Zayn started at Doctor Peters’ nod. “Your powers reacted and you knocked Harry, Niall, Liam and I out with them. We thought you were in the medic wing at first, and then at your therapy appointment but Harry found a note that said you had left the school.”

Louis blinked and turned to Harry. “What did the note say?” he asked.

“It said you had gone to live with your biological father,” Harry mumbled. 

“Troy?” Louis wondered, brow furrowing. “I haven’t seen him since I was a little kid.”

“Your note said…”

“That can be explained later,” Doctor Peters cut in. “It wasn’t until a week ago that Harry found you. Nick had kidnapped you, in a sense, though he maintains you went of your own violation, and he was using you to commit crimes.”

“…Crimes?” Louis repeated. “What? _How_?”

“Nick has the ability of power manipulation,” Doctor Peters explained. “Once he has learned about a power, he can then manipulate the person who has the power to do things that he wants them to do. He manipulated _you_ into using your invisibility and your force fields to protect him while he committed crimes across the United Kingdom. He was captured, however, and even in your coma state, you managed to keep a force field around him so that he couldn’t use his powers anymore. This, while commendable on your behalf, drained you severely. Coupled with the fact that Nick had been using your powers for his own gain for more than a month, your body was severely depleted of its energy supply and you spent the last week recovering.”

“So comas are my thing, then?” Louis asked. “Well, that sucks.”

Doctor Peters levelled him with a look. “You’re lucky to be alive, Louis,” she started. “The sheer amount of power you displayed at the house alone, according to the boys, should have killed you but here you are, still alive. I think a week long coma is a pretty fair trade off.”

Louis nodded and gripped Harry’s hand tighter. 

“I’m going to need to keep you overnight for observations but Zayn here seems to have all of your healing under control,” Doctor Peters said as she stood up, slipping her pen back into her lab coat pocket. “He can call for me if you need anything.”

Louis nodded again. “Okay,” he said. 

Doctor Peters left the room and Harry scooted even closer, pressing his nose just under Louis’ jaw. 

“I was kidnapped?” Louis asked desperately, looking up at Zayn. “What _happened_?”

“Harry was the one who figured it out,” Zayn said, gesturing at Harry with his chin. “I’ve got some more tests to run on you before I can do a proper analysis, so he can talk to you while I do those.”

“Yeah, sure,” Louis said absently. He turned to Harry and laced their fingers together. “Haz? What happened?”

Louis listened as Harry recounted the tale of everything that had happened over the course of the last month. He could see that Harry was downplaying the level of worry that he’d been experiencing while Louis wasn’t there and he could see it in the bags underneath Harry’s eyes how little sleep he was getting. Harry filled Louis in on his discovery of the times that Nick was leaving the castle and the articles that cropped up the next day listing a robbery, a break in, a mysterious murder among other things. Louis swallowed thickly as he listened to Harry recount how he followed Nick from the school to the house that he had been keeping Louis in. 

Harry’s voice shook as he described finding Louis, practically in a lifeless state, in the house and how Nick had manipulated all of them into attacking each other. Harry ran his fingers over the inside of Louis’ left wrist when he said that Nick had forced Louis to break his own wrist in front of them just to prove that Nick was the one in control. 

Louis’ heart thudded in his chest as Harry spoke. It all seemed too much. He couldn’t begin to comprehend what had happened.

“I guess,” Harry said slowly, his gaze downcast, “I guess that it’s a good thing you can’t remember it all. I don’t know if that was your doing, or Nick’s but you shouldn’t have to remember that.”

Louis nodded dumbly. His gaze flicked to his wrist. “Wait,” he started, “I thought my wrist was broken?”

“Zayn fixed it,” Harry replied.

Louis’ gaze flicked up to Zayn who was jotting something down on his clipboard. “Huh?” 

A gold glow emitted from Zayn’s hand as he stepped closer and Louis frowned ever so slightly. “I can heal things,” he said. 

“You can heal things?” Louis repeated. 

“You missed a lot while you were away,” Zayn replied with a shrug. 

“Looks like it,” Louis muttered. “What else did I miss?”

“Harry cried a lot, Niall’s pregnant and Liam is dating Gemma,” Zayn deadpanned. 

“One out of three ain’t bad,” Niall said with a grin as he wandered into the medic wing with Liam. Liam rolled his eyes and kissed Zayn softly on the lips, proving Zayn’s comment about that wrong. Niall let out a happy laugh and all but jumped onto the bed, tackling Louis in a giant hug. “Missed you, Lou.”

Louis smiled and held Niall close. “Missed you too,” he replied. “So, how far along are you and who’s the father?”

Niall laughed again and pulled back from their embrace to sit on the edge of the bed properly. He put a hand on his stomach and patted it fondly. “Nah, I just ate a lot for lunch,” he said. “No baby in here.”

“So,” Louis started quietly, turning to face Harry. “That means you cried a lot.”

Harry kept his gaze down and nodded once. Louis moved so that he could hold Harry properly and he kissed Harry’s neck briefly before just holding him tightly. “I was so scared,” Harry whispered. “So scared, Lou.”

“I know, baby,” Louis whispered back. “I know.”

The bed dipped again a moment later and Louis pulled back from Harry’s embrace, only to find himself with an armful of Liam, who clung to him tightly. Louis gave into the hold and let Liam hug him for however long he needed to.

Zayn set down his chart and clambered onto the bed next to Liam. How the bed didn’t break was beyond Louis’ knowledge. It felt right, having these four boys surrounding him, even if he was stuck in a hospital bed. 

It still was hard to think that he had been gone for more than a month and in a coma again for a week. His mind was still quite blank in patches before his last memory and he figured that was Nick’s doing. He frowned.

“Where is Nick?” he asked suddenly.

Everyone fell silent. 

“Well?” he prompted.

“He’s been detained in an isolation cell,” Liam replied. “The cell is structured so that Nick can’t use his powers inside of it, or on anyone who enters. It took some serious modifications but it’s strong enough to hold him.”

“And?” Louis asked, knowing there was more. 

“And they’re waiting for you to wake up to testify that Nick was using you,” Zayn said. “Which might not go down well considering you can’t remember a thing.”

“Oh,” Louis said. “Well, that’s shit.”

“Yeah, it is,” Zayn agreed. “I’ve been working on healing your mind but I haven’t been able to do much because you were knocked out. Doctor Peters is keen for me to keep trying now that you’re awake. If that doesn’t help, she has a telepath friend who can access your memories if you lower your shield.”

“Will it hurt?” Louis asked timidly. He didn’t like the sound of some random person prodding in his unprotected mind. He didn’t like the sound of that at all. 

“I’m not sure,” Zayn replied honestly. “I’d never do anything to intentionally hurt you, you know that.”

Louis nodded. “I know,” he said. He yawned widely and gave the others a sheepish look. “I’m a little sleepy.”

“We’ll leave,” Liam said, slipping off the bed from behind Zayn. “C’mon, Niall, Harry.”

Louis shook his head. “Harry can stay,” he said. “I…”

“It’s okay,” Liam replied. “We get it.”

Louis shot him a thankful look. 

“Get some rest,” Niall said, moving to kiss Louis’ cheek. “We’ve got a footy match that you missed and I want to kick your arse.”

Louis laughed and nodded. “Sounds good, Nialler,” he replied. 

Liam, Zayn and Niall left, Zayn with the promise of coming back a little later to try and work on Louis’ mind. Once the room was empty, Harry got up out of the bed and pulled the curtain around to give them some privacy. He slipped back into bed next to Louis and immediately pressed his cold feet against Louis’ shins. Louis wriggled to get away but Harry’s arms quickly wound their way around his middle, keeping him close. 

“What’s this?” Louis started. “You think that just because I’m gone for a while that you can put your cold feet on me all of a sudden?”

Harry grinned innocently at him. He wriggled the toes of his right foot to get it in between Louis’ legs. “Yes,” he replied. Louis playfully rolled his eyes and scooted closer to Harry. 

“Hi, love,” he said softly. He reached over to push Harry’s hair off his forehead and Harry caught Louis’ hand in his own. He brought it to his mouth and kissed the palm of it softly, his lips brushing over the soft skin. 

“I don’t like sleeping without you,” Harry started, his lips still against Louis’ open palm. He kissed the tip of Louis’ index finger and sighed. “I didn’t sleep well without you.” His lips grazed the tip of Louis’ middle finger, lingering there for a few long moments. “Everyone was so sure that you had left, like _properly_ left.” Louis expected Harry to kiss the tip of his third finger but instead he kissed the base, making Louis’ heart skip a beat in his chest. “I knew you couldn’t have left me, though. Not properly at least.” He kissed the tip of Louis’ pinkie finger next, twice in succession. “We always said that we’d never leave each other and I knew you wouldn’t break that promise, Lou. I hoped you wouldn’t.” Harry’s voice cracked and he kissed the pad of Louis’ thumb, his lips pressed hard against the flesh. He took Louis’ hand and guided it to cup his cheek. Louis automatically pressed his fingers against Harry’s hairline, scratching lightly. Harry’s eyes fluttered closed at the pressure before opening again. He licked his lips and Louis’ gaze followed the motion. He missed Harry. Even though he hadn’t known anything that was going on, he felt the phantom ache of missing Harry lodged in his chest. 

“I’ll never leave you,” Louis promised. “ _Ever_.” Harry nodded and closed the gap between them, kissing Louis with a feather light touch. Harry instantly relaxed against him, tilting his head ever so slightly to deepen the kiss. Louis curled his fingers in Harry’s hair, causing Harry to let out a slight noise. Their lips slotted together perfectly and Louis sighed contently. Harry’s hand slid across the pyjama top Louis was wearing and rested on his sternum. Louis couldn’t help but wonder if Harry was subconsciously seeking out his heartbeat to make sure that this was all real. 

He pulled back a moment later and took in Harry’s pink lips and slightly flushed cheeks. His eyes were still closed and Louis impulsively ducked forwards, pressing a careful kiss over each eyelid. Harry’s eyes fluttered open a moment later, his gaze locking with Louis’ own. 

“I love you,” Louis whispered. Harry broke out into a large smile and shuffled closer, holding Louis so tight it probably should have hurt but Louis found it comforting. It was like Harry was trying to get as close as he physically could. Louis wished, not for the first time, that they _could_ get physically closer. The touches and the cuddles weren’t enough some days. He wanted Harry _closer_ , closer but he knew he couldn’t. Not for lack of them trying, though. Even in their sleep, they always ended up tangled together. They had no personal space between them at all and Louis liked it like that. 

“I love you too,” Harry mumbled after a few moments. He played with the hem of Louis’ pyjama top and pushed it up ever so slightly. His fingers grazed the skin of Louis’ stomach, causing his muscles to twitch underneath his touch. 

“I know I don’t remember being away,” Louis started, “but I missed you.”

Harry blinked up at him. “I missed you too, Boobear. So much.”

Louis leaned forwards and kissed Harry soundly on the lips briefly before pulling back. “We should get some sleep,” he said. “I know you’re tired and I’m definitely tired.” Harry nodded and they kissed once more before settling down against the single pillow they were sharing. Harry tugged on the standard issue hospital blanket so it was covering them both and he curled himself around Louis as tightly as he could. Louis smiled to himself and dropped a kiss on the top of Harry’s head. He closed his eyes and let sleep overcome him, feeling safe and secure in the arms of his boyfriend.

~*~

It was the smirk that played across Nick’s lips that made Louis do it. He reacted instinctively, his powers taking control as they tried to kill Nick yet again. The force field appeared on the other side of the glass that separated them and wrapped itself around Nick, slowly creeping up his body. It tightened around him right before Louis’ eyes and he greedily watched as Nick struggled with the binding, hoping that it would do some serious damage.

Louis had snuck away from the medic wing and found where Nick was. He wasn’t exactly sure what he had planned to do the next time he saw Nick – he wasn’t even sure if he _wanted_ to see Nick but there was a niggling at the back of his mind that he couldn’t ignore, encouraging him to go and find Nick in the isolation cell he was residing in.

Louis had taken one look at Nick and he had just _reacted_. It was stupid, he knew that, but Nick seemed to expect it if the way he was grinning at Louis was anything to go by. Louis immediately retracted the force field and Nick lazily wandered over to the glass wall that separated them. Nick looked unfazed at the fact that Louis had just tried to strangle him with a force field. In fact, it looked like he had been _expecting_ it.

“I knew you’d come eventually,” Nick said, sounding bored. 

“You put me in a coma,” Louis snapped in response. “You _kidnapped_ me.”

Nick tutted. “Darling, I did no such thing,” he said. His stance was relaxed and it unnerved Louis. He figured that Nick was aiming for that. “You came willingly.”

“Then _why_ can’t I remember any of it?” Louis asked. 

“Do you really _want_ to remember?” Nick asked in return, his voice low. “Do you want to remember the blood on your hands, the people you killed for me? Do you want to remember what it was like snapping someone’s neck with your bare hands? Feeling their bones break under the pressure _you_ had on them?”

Louis’ eyes widened reflexively. “I… I… I _didn’t_.”

“Oh, but you did,” Nick replied with a smirk. He licked his lips and stared straight at Louis. “I didn’t even have to ask you, in the end, you just did it for me. And you were _so_ good at it, weren’t you, darling?”

Louis impulsively took a step back. He could feel force fields rising out of his palms and he wanted nothing more than to shove one over Nick and make him suffer but he couldn’t. Somewhere in the deep recesses of his mind, he knew that it was wrong. He so desperately wanted Nick to shut up, wanted to _force_ him to shut up, but he felt like it was what Nick wanted. He couldn’t give Nick what he wanted, not anymore. He was done being manipulated.

“I think,” he started with a newfound confidence. “That you’re full of _shit_.” Nick blinked lazily at him, giving off an aura of boredom. “In fact, I’d be willing to bet on it. There’s a telepath coming to meet with me in a few hours and I’m sure she’ll unravel _all_ of your dirty little secrets. Because you didn’t expect to be caught, did you, Nicholas?” He smirked when Nick’s gaze shifted ever so slightly. He pressed on. “I bet you told me things, thinking that I wouldn’t remember them, or that you could manipulate me into not remembering them. I wonder just _how_ many crimes you committed that I witnessed, Nick? I’m guessing from the look on your face it’s enough to put you away for a very, _very_ long time.”

“You’re going to be sorely disappointed then,” Nick said but Louis could hear the slight wavering in his voice. 

“Am I, though?” Louis teased. “I don’t think I am. See, the best part about being me is that I can control this shield I have on my mind. You had to find a way to break it so that you could break me but you can’t do that anymore and it _scares_ you.” Nick flinched a little and Louis licked his lips with glee. “It’s going to be a _long_ and lonely life for you in here, Nick. You don’t have many friends, do you?” Nick didn’t react to that taunt. “And absolutely no one is going to want to know you after they find out that you manipulated a _student_ into doing your bidding.

“I guess you shouldn’t have been so cocky about not getting caught,” Louis continued. He stepped closed to the glass and smirked down at Nick. “I hope that you use this time to _think_ about what you’ve done, Nicholas.” Nick glared at him and Louis winked. He wasn’t scared of Nick anymore. “Think of me,” Louis added. He licked his lips once more and pressed them against the cool glass, leaving a very visible mark on it before he walked away, leaving Nick completely alone.

~*~  
_Harry_  


“I thought you’d be happier now he’s awake?”

The bed dipped and Harry looked up tiredly at Zayn. He picked at the hem of pillow in his lap and shrugged one shoulder. He flicked his gaze back down and a moment later, the bed dipped again and Niall pressed into Harry’s side, looping an arm around his waist. Harry automatically leaned into the touch. He turned his head and buried his face in the cook of Niall’s neck, inhaling deeply, re-familiarising himself with Niall’s scent. He could feel the calmness emitting from Niall and he knew that Niall was doing that just for him. He picked up Niall’s free hand and laced their fingers together, holding it loosely. 

“I am,” Harry said.

“Haz,” Liam said softly. “This is _us_ , you can tell us anything.”

Harry licked his dry lips and nodded, shifting a little on the bed so he could look at his three friends. Louis was in therapy and Harry felt lost. He knew that Louis would be in there for a few hours at least, especially as Doctor Peters’ telepath friend had visited that morning. Harry hadn’t been allowed to be there while Louis was in his appointment but he could feel the hurt rolling off his boyfriend in waves, even from across the mansion. It was a new thing, to be able to feel what Louis was feeling, even from a great distance. It had left Harry crippled that morning, as he had no idea what was going on. He hated that Louis felt everything fresh and new of what had happened to him. Harry just wanted to fix it but he couldn’t and he couldn’t even _be_ there to hold Louis’ hand while he was going through it. It was heartbreaking.

“I can feel what Louis is feeling now,” Harry mumbled, his grip on the pillow in his lap tightening ever so slightly. “Not all the time, but, this morning…”

“With the telepath?” Zayn offered and Harry nodded. “ _Shit_. Harry… That must have been–”

“Painful,” Harry said, cutting Zayn off. “It was painful.”

Niall’s arm tightened around Harry’s waist and Harry loosened his grip from Niall’s hand to rub at his temples where he could feel a headache building. He just wanted to get back to Louis, where the headache would be alleviated and he would feel relaxed.

“We need to talk,” Harry said after a few long moments. “About what happened that day. Because… Because…” He paused and scrunched his eyes closed. 

“We don’t have to, Harry,” Niall said softly.

“We do,” Harry replied. “Because I’m just like _him_.”

“Harry, you’re nothing like him, okay?” Zayn said earnestly. “ _Okay_?”

Harry shook his head, strands of his curly hair falling in front of his eyes. He sniffed and pushed it back with his hand and tried not to let the tears that were pooling in the corners of his eyes spill over. “I am,” he muttered. “I manipulated all of you. Your powers… That was me.”

“Harry,” Liam started, his tone soft but firm. “ _Nick_ was the one manipulating _all_ of us. He was in my head, Harry. I…” he paused and Harry saw him look to Zayn, who just nodded. “You were the only one whose head he wasn’t in, so you didn’t get to feel what it was like. Not first hand, at least. I don’t know what you felt from your empathy powers but he was _in_ my head and it felt like someone was prodding at my brain to find my deepest, darkest secrets and all of my weaknesses just to expose them. He wanted to use them against me so I would kill you all.”

Harry blinked and furrowed his brow in confusion. “What…?”

Liam sighed and scrubbed a hand over his hair, causing it to stick up a little. “I can’t explain what it was like for Zayn or Niall but when I felt Nick touch me, he was controlling my mind. It’s not… It wasn’t pleasant.” He fell silent for a moment and Harry looked to Niall and Zayn who both nodded their confirmation. “Nick didn’t just want to stop us, Harry, he wanted us dead. I felt my powers being manipulated to the point where it felt like _I_ wanted to kill you. All I could do was see red and all I could feel was the overwhelming desire to kill you. To kill Niall. To kill _Zayn_. Harry, he wanted me to kill my own _boyfriend_. Please trust me when I say you’re _nothing_ like him.”

“It was the same for me,” Niall said after a few long moments. He turned to face Harry a little more. “I didn’t want to share this with you because I didn’t want to burden you with it but it wasn’t good, Harry. Nick brought stuff out of me that even I didn’t want to admit, or even remember.” Harry grasped Niall’s hand again and held it tightly in his own. “I had no clue what was happening but mate, the desire to kill you was pretty strong. I probably would’ve done it, too, if you hadn’t pulled me out when you did.”

“But I manipulated all of you,” Harry said weakly. “I made Liam set his entire body on fire.”

Zayn shook his head. “No, you never,” he replied. “You helped unlock the power that was already there. I tested Liam myself.” Liam gave Zayn a small smile and kissed his cheek. “Liam, like the rest of us, has powers that are going to continue to grow as we do. Eventually they’ll settle down and we’ll be able to have complete control over them but you didn’t make Liam do anything. His powers were never going to just be in his hands. His heat vision developed this year, as did his infrared vision. It was only a matter of time before his other powers kicked in, too.”

Liam smiled softly and leaned into Zayn a little more. “It freaked me out, of course,” he said. “We were in an intense situation and it probably wasn’t ideal to burst into flames like that but it happened and Zayn saved me, so it’s alright.”

“Yeah, what was with that?” Harry asked, remembering Zayn’s method of extinguishing the flames.

“It’s all a part of my powers,” Zayn replied with a shrug. “I can control the elements, which means I can control them however I want. I’d been practicing with my air control for a few weeks before that day, so it wasn’t that hard.”

“It looked sick,” Niall interjected with a grin.

Zayn gave him a small smile. “I can control the temperature of it, too. I’m able to inhale much more than anyone else and expel it in like I did that day. Kind of like Superman.”

Liam grinned next to him. “You’re my Superman,” he muttered before he kissed Zayn soundly on the lips. 

Harry smiled at his friends for a moment before sobering. “I know you say it’s okay, but I still manipulated you all and I don’t like that.”

“Harry,” Liam started, turning his attention back to him but keeping his hand on Zayn’s thigh. “Given a choice between being manipulated by Nick to kill three of my best friends, and having you manipulate our powers to _stop us_ from using them to harm each other, I would choose you every single time.”

“Me too,” Niall and Zayn echoed. 

“You weren’t manipulating us to harm us,” Liam continued. “You were doing it to save us. We’re a team, remember?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, I remember.”

“Good,” Liam replied. “Because we’re in this together, all five of us, and we trust you completely. You used your powers to control our own for a mere moment to get us all to snap out of trying to kill each other. And I think I speak for all of us when I say that we’re glad you did. Because the alternative is much worse.”

Harry nodded sombrely. There was still guilt settled in his chest but it wasn’t as heavy as it was before. He knew what Liam was saying made sense and was right, but it still hated the fact that he had to manipulate his friends and their powers at all. He also knew that, if the situation were to repeat itself, he would probably do the same thing. He couldn’t sit idly by and watch his friends try to kill each other. Even when they had advanced on him, he knew that they wouldn’t have wanted that. His main focus had been to save Louis, that day, and they had successfully done that, despite all of the hiccups they faced.

“You alright now, then?” Zayn asked. “Now that you know you didn’t do anything wrong?”

Harry sucked his bottom lip into his mouth, his teeth chewing at it for a few long moments. “Yeah, a little,” he replied. “I keep flashing back to it, though. Wondering what I could’ve done differently but I keep coming back to the same solution, every single time.”

“That’s because it was the only solution,” Zayn pointed out. “You were the only one who could save us from ourselves, Harry. We’re _all_ thankful that you did because we would all be dead, otherwise.”

Harry let Zayn’s words sink in. He was right, of course. The bed dipped as the boys all moved and they wrapped themselves around Harry in a tight, group hug. He felt his body relax under their touch and he closed his eyes, letting the feelings of love coming from the three of them overcome him. 

“We love you, Harry,” Niall said, pressing a kiss into Harry’s cheek. “A lot, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

Harry huffed out a breath as they all pulled back a little, still holding each other as closely as they could. “I know. I love you all too.”

“I feel like this is going to turn into an orgy,” Zayn commented a moment later. 

“Louis will be disappointed that he missed out,” Liam added and Harry laughed.

“Yeah, he would,” he agreed fondly. “We’re nothing without him, though.”

He couldn’t help but think how right that statement was. He knew that he was nothing without Louis. He had almost found out what that was like in the time that Louis had been away and he never wanted to go there again. Harry loved Louis with every single fibre of his being and he wanted Louis to know that at every moment he could. Especially after everything that had happened and that he had been going through since he had woken up from his coma.

“I’m gonna marry him one day,” Harry said softly, a smile playing on his lips.

“I call best man!” Niall exclaimed loudly before anyone else could, throwing an arm around Harry’s shoulders. 

Liam and Zayn rolled their eyes fondly and Harry grinned, leaning into Niall. He was glad his friends didn’t say how stupid he was for feeling that way, or try and dispute the fact that it wouldn’t happen, or that he was so young. They just knew it. Just like Harry knew it from the first second he saw Louis that it would happen. He liked voicing it out loud; it made everything feel like it could just happen at any moment. His body felt warm with the thought and he enjoyed the feelings it created inside of him. 

“Well,” Zayn started. “Until that happens, let’s just finish school, yeah?”

Harry grinned. “Yeah,” he agreed. “I can do that.”

~*~  
_Louis_  


The rest of Louis’ week was intense. He met with the telepath friend of Doctor Peters’ and she helped him unlock his memories from when he was with Nick, all the way back to him witnessing Nick kill the old guy with the electricity power. It had left him completely drained, of course, but he felt better knowing that he hadn’t killed anyone himself. It wasn’t to say that he was completely innocent, though. He had been there with Nick every single one of his outings. It was obvious that Louis was being manipulated but he still felt guilty every time he caught a memory of himself reacting while being out with Nick, throwing force fields around people so they couldn’t move, or snatching guns from police officers while invisible just to make sure that he and Nick weren’t attacked.

Harry was quick to reassure Louis that it wasn’t his fault. He held Louis’ hand tightly throughout the entire ordeal, refusing to leave Louis’ side. He had barely spent any time apart from Louis since he had woken up. It wasn’t until Harry was fast asleep that Zayn had filled Louis in on just how heartbroken Harry had been in his absence. Guilt flooded through Louis at that confession. He felt awful knowing that he had unwittingly caused Harry so much hurt. He hated that Harry had spent more than a month thinking that Louis wasn’t going to come back. No matter how many times Harry reassured Louis that he _knew_ Louis would come back, Louis could always see the flicker of doubt in Harry’s eyes.

He didn’t mind that Harry was extra clingy. He felt better about the entire thing just by having Harry at his side. He didn’t want to feel so lost again.

After his mind had been essentially freed with the help of the telepath, Louis knew he would probably have to spend a fair amount of time in therapy with Doctor Simmons. The downside to that was that school was only two short weeks away from ending for the year and Louis would either have to make regular trips across the United Kingdom to see her whenever he needed to, or he would have to risk telling a non-mutant psychologist all of his problems. He knew that they wouldn’t understand what he was going through. Harry had encouraged him to keep a journal so that he wouldn’t forget anything and Louis found himself agreeing. Harry had spent one evening with his laptop out, browsing stationery sites for the best possible journal for Louis to use. Louis had smiled at the gesture. He really did have an amazingly thoughtful and sweet boyfriend. 

Louis completely missed taking any of his exams and the preparation for them while being away and being in a coma, and he groaned at the thought of having to repeat the year. After speaking with the headmaster and all of his teachers (minus Nick) in a meeting, they said that Louis could take the exams over the summer break and if he passed, then he wouldn’t have to repeat the year. Even though it meant Louis would have to spend a lot of his summer revising, he didn’t care. He didn’t want to have to repeat school again. 

Harry had told him that he didn’t want to be at the school without Louis, that it wouldn’t seem right but Louis couldn’t let Harry miss out on doing his A Levels over himself. It was wrong. He hoped to get a job near to the school so that he could see Harry regularly. He hadn’t told Harry but he hoped to get a flat near there so that Harry could live with him. He didn’t want to bring it up in a conversation just yet, not while he was still recovering, but he felt like it was the right move for them to make as a couple. He didn’t ever want to be apart from Harry again and he knew Harry felt the same. 

Things eased up after Louis, and the telepath on his behalf, had testified to the fact that Nick had manipulated Louis into doing his bidding after Nick had kidnapped him. Louis hated the fact that he had to face Nick once more during the in-school held trial-like occasion. Mutants that Louis had never even heard before had come for the occasion, making Louis even more nervous than he had been before. It had been short, thankfully. Once the telepath had confirmed all of Louis’ memories and experiences and had also looked into Nick’s mind, he had been found guilty and was sentenced to stay in the isolation chambers of one of the prisons that held mutants as well as humans. Louis had wondered how their powers would be kept under control but Doctor Peters had patted him on the shoulder and said they had a cure for that. Louis figured he didn’t need to worry about it after that.

The entire ordeal was a bit surreal for Louis. He felt like he was being poked and prodded at from all sides and even though he won and was able to walk free, he couldn’t help but feel guilty about it all. The stolen items and monies were all returned and the crown jewels that Nick had stolen with Louis’ help were returned with a mutant who was in close contact with the royal family. He had almost fainted when he had remembered being a part of that heist. It was bad enough that he had been used in bank robberies across the United Kingdom but to steal the crown jewels as well was another thing altogether. Louis hated that he had been any part of that at all. It made him feel sick. It was something he was going over frequently in his therapy sessions with Doctor Simmons while he was still at the school and he just hoped that by the time the school year had finished, he had made peace with it a little more.

His friends had been amazing through the whole thing. One of them stayed with him at all times, if Harry couldn’t, and even when Harry was there. Louis felt like he had missed out on quite a lot by being away. Rationally, he knew that not a lot had occurred while he wasn’t there but he still felt that way. They had all assured him that he was being silly. All six of them had ended up falling asleep on the floor on the last night they would be spending in the mansion before the school year officially ended. They had pulled the mattresses off his and Harry’s beds and pushed them together, covering them with bed sheets as it was getting warmer, even by Scottish weather standards, and they had fallen asleep in a tangle of limbs, their faces pushed against random body parts but all touching in some way or another. It was comforting, not only for Louis, but for them as well. Harry had sighed contently and curled into Louis’ arms and that night was the first night since Louis awoke that they were both nightmare free. There was something to be said about the power of friendship over their mutant powers, Louis thought as he had fallen asleep. 

“Last day of school,” Liam muttered when they woke up. They were the only two awake and Louis smiled at the familiarity of it.

“Yeah,” he agreed. “Do you have any plans?”

Liam glanced at Zayn’s sleeping body and nodded. “I’m going to spend the summer with Zayn. Well, most of it. Mum will kill me if I don’t spend at least a week with her. I think we’re going away, as well. Spain, I think.”

Louis smiled. “That sounds great,” he said softly so he didn’t wake the others. 

“What about you?” Liam asked. He reached across the gap between them and laced their fingers together. Louis squeezed them softly on reflex.

“I’ve got a flat that I’ve organised to live in,” Louis replied. “Just for the summer, though. It’s a crappy place that I asked Gemma to check out for me. She said it’ll do for what I need it for. Which is good if I’m not going to be there for very long.” He paused and let his gaze wander to Harry’s sleeping face. His lips were parted and he looked so peaceful right then that it made Louis’ chest constrict a little. “Between studying for and taking my exams, Harry’s mum’s wedding and sorting out my old house, it’s going to be a busy summer.”

“We’ll be there for you through that, you know that, right?” 

Louis nodded. “Yeah, I do,” he said. “I think it’s something I have to do alone, though. I mean, I don’t _want_ to, of course, but I need to sort through my Mum’s stuff and the girls’ stuff and see what I can do about selling the house.”

“We’ll help you,” Liam repeated. “All of us. Our parents will all help as well. Harry’s mum and stepdad are really good with this stuff. They won’t let you do it alone.”

Louis sighed. “I know,” he said. “I just don’t want to burden him with it, you know?”

Liam nodded. “I know.”

“He’s… he’s just been through _so much_ these last two months that I don’t want him to have to worry or stress,” Louis continued softly. “I hate seeing him worry.”

“He does it because he loves you, though,” Liam said. “We all do.”

“I know,” Louis replied. “I love you all too, but it’s not something I’d wish upon anyone.”

“Then don’t force yourself to do it alone, Lou,” Liam said sternly, even though he was still whispering. “I know we can’t really sort through the things you want to keep that belonged to your mum or your sisters but we’re good at carrying heavy things at least.”

Louis gave Liam a small smile. “Yeah, with those biceps, you certainly can.” 

Liam laughed and then hastily covered his mouth with his free hand. Zayn shifted against him and Louis grinned. “We should get up soon.”

Louis looked around at the four other sleeping bodies and shook his head. “In a little while,” he started. “Let them sleep, they deserve it.”

“Alright,” Liam agreed. He squeezed Louis’ hand in his own gently before leaning over to kiss Louis’ cheek softly. “Are you nervous about meeting Harry’s family?” he asked after a while.

“So fucking scared,” Louis admitted. “Don’t you dare tell anyone, though.”

“I won’t,” Liam vowed. “But they’re lovely people. Anne is going to love you.”

Louis felt his cheeks flush a little. “I hope so. It’s a big thing meeting the boyfriend’s parents.” 

“Zayn met mine and he did really well,” Liam said. 

“Yeah, but everyone loves Zayn,” Louis protested. “It’s the cheekbones – everyone swoons at the cheekbones.”

Liam grinned. “They’re pretty good cheekbones.”

“Will you two shut _up_ about my cheekbones,” Zayn grumbled somewhere from the vicinity of Liam’s hip. He swung his hand out, obviously trying to punch them but completely missed and ended up clocking himself on the head instead. Louis and Liam laughed loudly at the action. The noise caused the others to rouse and blink at them sleepily.

“Wha’s funny?” Niall asked, rubbing his fist in the corner of his eyes. 

“Zayn hit himself over the head,” Louis replied. “You had to be there.” He quickly became distracted by Harry’s body shifting across the mattress so that he could give Louis a good morning kiss. He sighed contently and Harry beamed at him, wrapping his arms around Louis for a longer snuggle. 

Eventually, they all got up and pushed the mattresses back onto the bed frames. Louis remade his bed while Harry remade his own and the others filtered out of the room to return to their own to get dressed. Ashley and Niall had lingered behind for a moment to give them both a hug and Louis couldn’t help but wonder what it was for. He didn’t ask, though, and just accepted the hugs from both of them. 

Harry made them all one last breakfast a short while later, instead of joining everyone in the dining hall. They all chattered over the top of each other, trying to get as much conversation in as possible. Louis felt glad to have met this group of people – they were all amazing and he loved spending the entire school year with every single one of them. He never thought he would have friends like this but he was so glad he did.

After they had finished breakfast, they all returned to their own rooms to finish packing, and in Louis and Harry’s case, get changed out of their pyjamas. 

“Are you still okay to drive me to Holmes Chapel?” Harry asked as he picked out the clothes he was going to be wearing that day.

“Of course,” Louis replied. “Zayn’s letting me keep his Range Rover over the break, so it’s more than okay.”

Harry nodded and Louis crossed the room over to him, still in his pyjamas. He wrapped his arms loosely around Harry’s waist and looked up at him.

“I hate that you got so much taller than me while I wasn’t here,” Louis mumbled, completely forgetting what he was going to say in place of looking up at Harry.

“I didn’t grow _that_ much,” Harry protested, moving his own arms to hold Louis close. Louis lifted his head and kissed Harry on the chin, his lips fitting perfectly against it. Harry hummed softly and closed his eyes at the touch.

“You’re a giant compared to me,” Louis said quietly. “But I like it.” Harry smiled and Louis lifted himself onto his tiptoes to kiss Harry properly. Harry’s hand settled on his waist, holding him steady and he deepened the kiss for a few brief moments. “C’mon, we’d better get dressed. The leaving assembly starts soon.”

Harry nodded and blinked his eyes open. He licked his lips and Louis’ gaze automatically followed the action. He forced himself to step back from Harry and to finish getting dressed on his side of the room. He pulled on Harry’s green polo shirt from the first day he saw him and lifted the collar to his nose, inhaling deeply. It still smelled like Harry. He shoved a beanie on top of his mess of hair and quickly shimmied into a fresh pair of jeans. Everything else was already packed and ready to be put into Zayn’s car. 

“You know,” Harry said as he approached Louis from behind. He tugged at the collar of the polo shirt, pushing it to the side a little. “I do love when you wear my clothes.” Louis’ breath hitched as Harry’s lips fixed themselves on Louis’ neck, sucking a kiss into the sensitive skin there. Louis’ eyes fluttered closed automatically and he leaned back into Harry’s touch. 

“It doesn’t fit you anymore, anyway,” Louis mumbled as Harry’s teeth scraped over the area. He knew it was going to leave a mark but he frankly didn’t care right then. “Too small for your giant self.”

Harry hummed against his neck and moved back with a wet, smacking sound. His hand flattened out on Louis’ stomach and he pulled Louis closer so they were flush against each other. “You’re not, though,” he said softly. “You’re just the right size.”

Louis smiled despite himself. “Yeah,” he agreed. “I am.”

They parted again and Louis hauled his bags into the middle of the floor next to Harry’s own. It was strange to think that he would be leaving this place that he had called home for the last nine months or so. He looked around the room. It was oddly bare without his and Harry’s things littering every surface. Even though he knew that they would have to leave eventually, it felt strange. This had been his home where he had found a new family – he didn’t want to leave just yet.

“C’mon, you two,” Liam said from the door way. “The assembly is about to start.”

Louis nodded. “We’re coming,” he said. He reached for Harry’s hand, lacing their fingers together, and followed Liam and Zayn downstairs. Niall had no doubt already sped ahead so he could sit with Ashley. 

They took their seats towards the back of the makeshift assembly hall where Niall and Ashely were already sitting. Louis got as comfortable as he could sitting on the hard school chairs and kept his and Harry’s joined hands in his lap. Harry gave him a smile and Louis couldn’t help but grin back. He turned his attention to the headmaster and tried to focus on what he was saying to sum up the school year. Awards for excellence for some of the students were handed out and to no one’s surprise, Harry got several. Harry looked shocked every time his name was called out for some award or another and Louis beamed at him each time. By the end of it all, Harry had a handful of awards, Zayn and Ashley both had two and Liam, Niall and even Louis had one each. He had apparently excelled in his combative power training enough for them to give him a laminated certificate proclaiming so. 

“I hope that everyone enjoys their summer break,” Mr Brown said. “I’m looking forward to seeing most of you again next semester. Everyone else, good luck for the future, and remember – stay excellent!”

Applause filled the room as Mr Brown stepped away from the small podium and walked off the makeshift stage.

“Is that it?” Louis asked, turning to Harry, who nodded at him.

“Yeah, that’s it,” he replied. “He does that every year.”

“Alright,” Louis said with a nod. “So, what now? Do we get to leave or what?”

“We can leave,” Harry replied. “Everyone who is getting picked up will have their families waiting for them, and those of us that are driving ourselves can leave straight away. There’s always food for those that travelled a long while and want a break but we can leave whenever we want.”

Ashley and Niall got up first and they all headed for their respective floors, deciding to meet in the school garage where Zayn’s cars were waiting for them after they had collected their luggage. Louis kept a hold of Harry’s hand, not willing to let go just yet. He knew he was probably being stupidly clingy for no good reason but he didn’t care.

“This is it then,” Liam said as they formed a small circle next to Zayn’s Porsche. “God, I’m going to miss you guys.”

“It’s only going to be two weeks until we see each other again, Payno,” Niall said, clapping him on the shoulder from where he stood next to Liam. 

“I know but we’ve been living in each other’s pockets for the entire school year, it’ll be odd not to wake up and see you guys,” Liam explained. Zayn slipped his arm around Liam’s waist and pulled him into his side. Liam immediately leant into the touch and Louis noticed how he relaxed immediately. They were a good couple, he thought. Definitely not cuter than he and Harry were but they were cute none the less.

“And we’re only a phone call away, too,” Ashley added from next to Niall. “Plus, I have this nifty ability to teleport. So we’re a lot closer than you probably think.”

Liam gave her a small smile. “That’s true,” he replied. “Thank you.” 

Ashley beamed at him. “You’re welcome.”

“Alright, let’s get this over with before we all start crying,” Zayn said a moment later. They broke off into pairs to say their good byes. 

Louis approached Ashley first and she squeezed him tightly. “I know we didn’t really talk a _lot_ this year but you’ve been a great friend when we have,” he started. “And you make Niall happy, so that means a lot to me.”

Ashley grinned at him. “You’re pretty alright yourself, Tommo,” she said. “I’ll see you at the wedding, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Louis replied with a nod. She kissed his cheek and moved on to Harry. Louis barely had a moment to breathe before he had an armful of Niall. He squeezed Niall close and Niall laughed happily in his ear.

Niall surprised him by kissing him soundly on the lips, closed mouthed, thankfully and Louis stood, shocked for a few moments. “Figured you could use some Irish luck for meeting Harry’s parents.”

“You couldn’t have just given me a four leaf clover?” Louis asked. 

“I left them in me other bag,” Niall teased. He hugged Louis tightly and Louis closed his eyes, holding Niall just as tight. He felt silly, especially seeing as he was going to see these four people in two short weeks but he agreed with Liam – they had all lived in each other’s pockets for the entire school year, it was going to be hard adjusting to life without seeing them every day.

“Take care, okay, Lou?” Niall said. “Of you as well as Harry. And let him take care of you, too, alright?”

“Alright,” Louis agreed with a nod. He refused to cry. They weren’t going off to war or anything, they were just taking a break from each other. He took a moment to pull himself together before Liam was suddenly in front of him.

“Figured you’d want to save Zayn for last,” Liam said. 

Louis’ gaze flicked over to where Zayn and Ashley were hugging and he nodded. “Yeah,” he replied. “Now, don’t forget to stock up on lube, okay? Lots of it. And drink plenty of water, you’ll need it.”

Liam rolled his eyes and whacked Louis’ arm fondly. His force field immediately came out on reflex, covering the spot before Liam’s hand could make proper contact. “I should say the same for you. I bet you and Harry will be at it like rabbits when you move into your own flat.”

Louis bit his lip and looked over at his boyfriend who was laughing with Niall. “Maybe,” he replied. “God, I hope so, I think I’m getting blue balls from all of this sexual tension.”

Liam laughed. “I pity your neighbours.”

“Me too,” Louis replied with a wink.

“Bring it in then, Tommo,” Liam said. They stepped into each other’s embrace and Liam kissed the corner of Louis’ mouth affectionately before they hugged tightly. Liam’s hands were warm on his back and Louis relaxed into it. They parted a few moments later. Zayn was at Liam’s shoulder and the moment Liam stepped away, Zayn was hugging him tightly.

“You’re a tosser,” Zayn said affectionately. “I have no idea why we’re friends.”

“Me either,” Louis returned. He could feel tears pricking the backs of his eyes and he squeezed his eyes shut tightly to ward them off. “Thanks for letting me borrow your car.”

“Keep it,” Zayn said and Louis pulled back enough to gape at Zayn. “I’m serious, keep it. I’ll just buy another one during the summer.” 

Louis shook his head. “You’re a weird one,” he said fondly. 

“No worse than you,” Zayn returned. They kept a hold of each other and Louis knew he’d miss Zayn the most. Not that he would tell the others that, of course. 

“Come visit me, yeah?” 

Zayn nodded. “Of course,” he replied. “That’s if you and Harry aren’t too busy shagging.”

“Speak for yourself,” Louis jibed. “I already told Liam that you need to stock up on lube. Wouldn’t want your pretty arse getting sore.”

Zayn rolled his eyes at Louis. “God you’re crass.”

Louis beamed at him. “It’s why you love me.”

“True,” Zayn replied easily. “I’ll see you at the wedding.” Louis nodded and tightened his hold on Zayn a little more. “You’ll love Harry’s family, okay? Don’t worry about it too much. If Gemma loves you, Anne will.”

“God, I’m so nervous,” Louis whispered. He took a breath and erected a force field around them and tweaked it so that no one could listen in on their conversation. Zayn looked up briefly and raised an eyebrow at Louis but Louis just shook his head once and started to speak again. “It’s his _parents_ , what if I fuck it up?”

“You won’t, Lou,” Zayn replied, pinching Louis’ back through his shirt. “If they can handle Niall, they can handle you.”

Louis bit his lip. “I just want it to mean something, you know?” he started. “I want to ask Harry to move in with me.”

Zayn’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Yeah,” Louis replied. “I’m gonna have to get my own flat anyway and I want him living with me. Even if I have to drive him to school every day, I want to get a flat nearby so we can still be together.”

“God, you do have it bad,” Zayn commented. “You’re proper cute, though. Harry will say yes, you know that, right?”

Louis bit his lip again. “I hope he will.”

“He _will_ , no questions about it,” Zayn replied with confidence that Louis didn’t feel. “Don’t look so worried, Lou, he’d walk to the end of the Earth for you.”

“That’s what scares me,” Louis said softly. “I’d do the same for him, though. A hundred times over. I don’t want to spend any more time without him.”

“You’re going to give me rotten teeth from how sweet you both are,” Zayn teased. 

Louis pinched Zayn’s nipple in retaliation, making Zayn squirm. “C’mere, you loser,” he said, wrapping his arms around Zayn again. He kissed Zayn soundly on the lips before hugging him tightly, burying his face in the crook of Zayn’s neck. He inhaled deeply so he could imprint Zayn’s scent in his mind to call up whenever he missed him. It was cheesy but he knew Zayn was doing the same thing. “Alright, let go now, no need to get clingy,” he said wetly, surreptitiously wiping at his eyes. 

Zayn laughed softly and kissed his cheek. “Get lost then, Lou. I’ll see you for the wedding.”

Louis pulled back completely from Zayn and lowered his force field. Harry was at his side in an instant, taking Louis’ hand in his own and squeezing softly. 

“Drive safely, or teleport safely in your case, Ash,” Louis said as he turned to face his friends once more. “We’ll see you at Harry’s place in two weeks!”

They all cheered and yelled good byes as they got into different cars. Ashley grabbed Niall around the waist with one arm and pulled him close, her free hand holding her own luggage. They disappeared from sight a moment later and Louis smiled to himself as joined Harry at the boot of the car to lug their bags into the back. 

“You ready?” Louis asked as he closed the boot over.

Harry nodded. He pulled Louis close and kissed him. It was short but enough to leave Louis feeling breathless. He licked his lips as they parted and slowly opened his eyes. 

“You were kissing far too many people that weren’t me there,” Harry commented lowly. “Figured I’d better be the last one you kissed before I kiss you again.”

Louis grinned and shook his head. “Love you.”

Harry winked and returned the comment before they got into the car. Harry fiddled with the stereo and plugged his iPod in for their journey, selecting the playlist he specially made. He reached over and squeezed Louis’ thigh lightly before Louis started the car and pulled out of the school garage. 

Louis glanced in his rear view mirror at the mansion as it slowly got smaller in the distance and he smiled to himself as he thought of how amazing his year had been because of that school.

~*~

The drive to Holmes Chapel was thankfully an easy one. There weren’t any accidents or anything like that. Harry told Louis stories of growing up in the small town over the sound of his music that played low in the background and with each passing tale, Louis felt like he knew the place a little better. He swallowed down the surge of jealousy he felt when Harry described where his first kiss took place. He was immediately placated with Harry’s hand sliding across his thigh and a whispered promise that he wanted to take Louis there and kiss him to replace the memories with something better. Louis’ stomach fluttered pleasantly at that and he told Harry that he was more than willing to do that for him. Harry had grinned and they pulled into a rest stop shortly after that so Louis could kiss Harry for a few long moments and to refuel the car but mostly so he could kiss Harry.

“Take the next left,” Harry said softly. Louis nodded and put the indicator on to turn the corner. “It’s just up ahead.”

Nerves fluttered in Louis’ stomach as he followed Harry’s directions to pull up to his house. Harry beamed as they stopped and he opened his door immediately to get out. Louis shut off the engine and took a moment to breathe deeply before getting out of the car. Harry had already bounded up to the front door and knocked on it in rapid succession. 

“C’mon, Lou!” Harry called over his shoulder. Louis nodded at him twice before quickly pushing the lock button on the key remote. He pocketed the keys and stepped up behind Harry just as the door opened. Louis felt a shiver go through him and he barely got a chance to look at the kind, dark haired woman who suddenly had an armful of Harry. He smiled to himself as he watched Harry and, who he presumed was his mum, hug tightly. She squeezed her arms around Harry’s middle tightly. Louis bit his lip and shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. He felt like he was intruding on a personal moment between mother and son and he didn’t know where to put himself. 

“Oh, H,” Anne said fondly. “You’ve grown so much!”

Harry beamed at her, the dimple in his cheek visible even from where Louis was standing. She kissed his cheek softly and pulled back to look over Harry’s shoulder.

“I thought you said Louis was with you?” she asked.

Harry turned around and looked around, a frown etched on his brow. “Lou?”

Louis looked down at his hands and sighed. He was invisible again without realising it. “I’m here,” he replied. He stepped closer to Harry and slipped his hand into Harry’s own. 

“Come inside, boys,” Anne said. “You can get your bags later.”

She pushed the door wide open and Louis kept a tight hold of Harry’s hand as they walked into the house. It was as gorgeous on the inside as it was on the outside, he thought. Quite spacious and very tastefully decorated and yet it felt warm and inviting. Just like a home should, Louis thought.

“Is that H?” 

Louis looked up to see Gemma poke her head around a door frame, her long, dark hair tumbling over her shoulder. She grinned and stepped out to hug her brother. Harry let go of their joined hands so he could hug Gemma properly. Louis felt oddly naked without Harry touching him, despite the fact that he was invisible.

“Where’s Louis?” Gemma asked as they pulled away. “We all know he’s my favourite.”

“H _ey_ ,” Harry protested.

Louis laughed. “I’m here,” he replied. “Just malfunctioning at the moment.”

“Do you do this often?” Anne asked, looking in the general direction of Louis’ voice, concern etched on her face. 

“Umm…” Louis started. “Only when I’m nervous.”

“Oh, love,” Anne said softly. “There’s nothing to be nervous about.”

“It’s okay,” Louis replied. “When I first saw Harry, I turned invisible. I had no idea I could do it but it just happened.”

“He did the same when he met me,” Gemma added. “One second he was there, then the next, _poof_ – he wasn’t.”

“Maybe you should both go and get your bags now then, boys,” Anne started. “Perhaps it will relax Louis enough so that he will turn visible again.”

Harry nodded and held out his hand which Louis immediately took in his own.

“Wait,” Louis said. “Both of us get our bags…?”

Anne smiled. Louis could see where Harry got his charming smile from right in that movement. “Yes,” she replied with a nod. “I don’t want you staying in some run down flat when we have a spare room here. Harry has already filled us all in on your schooling activities for the summer and I think it’s better that you stay with family rather than in a flat all by yourself.”

“Oh.” Louis didn’t know how to react to that. Harry squeezed his hand and tugged on it so that Louis stepped closer to him. He wrapped his arms around Louis’ invisible body and glanced down to look at Louis that enough months of practice holding him had led him to perfect, even though he wasn’t visible. “I… I don’t know what to say.”

Anne smiled and reached over to awkwardly pat him on the shoulder. “Go get your bags and we’ll talk some more, okay? I’ll make some tea.”

“Okay,” Louis said at the same time Harry said, “Thanks, Mum!”

Harry led Louis outside and Louis unlocked the boot so they could get their bags. He stayed invisible the entire time and followed Harry up the stairs to Harry’s room. 

“You can just leave your stuff in here with mine for the moment,” Harry said. He crossed the room so he could shut his bedroom door and he waited. “I need a little guidance here, Lou.”

“Oh, sorry!” Louis closed the gap between them and guided Harry’s arms to wrap around his middle again. As he slid his hands up Harry’s arms to loop around his shoulders, he slowly turned visible again, flickering back into vision.

“There you are,” Harry said softly. He dipped his head and kissed Louis slowly. Louis sighed contently and opened his mouth underneath Harry’s own. They stepped backwards until Harry’s back was flush against the door. Louis lost himself in the kisses, letting the familiarity of kissing Harry wash over him. “I always wanted to kiss a boy in my room.”

Louis kissed across Harry’s jaw. “Yeah?” he muttered, pausing to nip at a spot he knew Harry loved.

“Yeah,” Harry replied breathily. 

“Is it how you imagined?” Louis asked as he pulled back, taking in Harry’s closed eyes and flushed cheeks. He looked amazing and Louis just wanted to keep kissing him.

“It’s better,” Harry replied, capturing Louis’ lips in his own again. Louis sighed into the kiss, tangling one hand in Harry’s hair again. Harry knocked his own beanie off his head as his fingers curled around the nape of Louis’ neck. He pulled back abruptly a moment later. “Wha’…?” 

“Can you… Please don’t touch the back of my neck?” Louis asked softly. “Not yet, it’s just…”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, of course,” he replied. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Louis said. “Honestly. It just reminds me a bit too much of Nick.”

Harry’s expression hardened for a moment before it softened completely. He pecked Louis gently on the lips once more before dropping his hands to rest on Louis’ hips. “I hate that he touched you like that.”

Louis settled his hands on top of Harry’s own and shrugged. “I’ll get over it,” he replied. 

Harry gave him a sad look. “I wish I could tell what you’re feeling so I could soothe you.”

Louis leaned forwards and kissed Harry’s cheek. “You do soothe me,” he said softly. “More than you realise.”

Harry ducked his head, his cheeks turning pink. “We’d better go back downstairs or Mum will think we’re up here shagging.”

Louis snorted. “She doesn’t have to worry about that,” he started. “I’m not shagging you in your mum’s house.”

Harry’s eyes widened and he pouted at Louis. “But… I thought…?”

“Sorry,” Louis said, sucking his bottom lip into his mouth. “It’s why I was getting that flat, you know.”

“So you could have sex with me?” Harry asked, perking up a little. 

Louis grinned. “Well, that and other things,” he replied. “We can wait though. We’ve waited this long, yeah?”

Harry sighed. “Yeah,” he agreed. “But I really wanted to have sex with you.” He squeezed Louis’ hips where his hands rested and pulled Louis close until they were flush against each other again. He gave Louis a look that made Louis’ heart stutter in his chest. It was hard enough saying no to Harry about regular things, Louis wasn’t sure how long he could say no to Harry when it came to sex – especially not when he wanted it just as much. He just didn’t want to have sex with Harry in his mum’s house. 

Other teenagers their age probably had sex all of the time but Louis wanted their first time to be special, not a rushed moment when the house was empty. He wasn’t even sure if the house _would_ be empty any time soon with the wedding preparations well under way. Harry had told him that there would be family members of his coming from all across the country for the wedding and the house was likely to get cramped really fast. Louis wished that he had that flat so they could escape and have some time to themselves. He wondered if Gemma had actually looked for a flat for him or hadn’t bothered because she knew what Anne would say. 

Louis didn’t just want it to be special for Harry but he wanted it to be special for himself. He wanted to be able to wake up in Harry’s arms afterwards and not feel rushed to put clothes back on because Harry’s mum or sister or stepfather could walk through the door at any moment. He wanted to be able to cuddle Harry afterwards because cuddling Harry was amazing and Louis figured they would be the cuddling type after sex. 

“Lou?” Harry whispered, ducking his head forward a little. Louis brushed his nose gently against Harry’s own then kissed him gently on the lips.

“Not yet,” he said quietly. Harry nodded and kissed him again, their lips slotting together perfectly. There was a knock on Harry’s door and they both jumped apart. Harry shot Louis an apologetic look and opened the door to see Gemma standing there, smirking.

“Good to see you visible again, Louis,” she said cheerfully. “Mum said tea is ready and I think she’d like to meet you properly, not invisible you.”

Louis nodded. He looked down at his hands again and saw them flicker in and out of visibility. Harry reached over and took one and squeezed it.

“C’mon,” he said. Louis took a breath and followed Gemma and Harry down the stairs again where Anne and a man Louis presumed was Robin, were waiting in the living room. 

“That’s better,” Anne said as they entered the living room. 

“Nice to meet you, Ms Cox,” Louis said, outstretching his hand. 

Anne smiled at him and pulled him in for a tight hug. “That’s how we do it around here,” she said into his hair. “And you can call me Anne.”

Louis nodded. “Okay,” he replied. Hugging her felt like hugging his mum. His chest constricted and he felt tears pricking the backs of his eyes at the pang of missing his own mum so much. They parted before Louis could properly cry and Anne patted his cheek twice gently. 

“This is Robin, my fiancé,” Anne said turning to introduce them. Much to Louis’ surprise, Robin hugged him as well. He could easily see why Harry loved his family so much. “And, of course you know Gemma.”

“I do,” Louis said.

Gemma grinned and threw him a wink. “Yeah, we’ve met,” she started. “Broke my heart, this one did, when he told me he was into boys.”

Louis sat down next to Harry on the loveseat and slung his arm around Harry’s shoulders. “It’s a thing we have in common, at least.”

Gemma laughed and passed him a cup of tea and he immediately passed it to Harry before picking up another one for himself. “That we do,” she said.

Anne asked both Harry and himself how their drive was and how Harry thought he went in his exams. He could see how relaxed Harry was just from being at home, surrounded by his family. Louis loved seeing him like this. It wasn’t as though he was different at school but there was an ease he could see in Harry’s face just from being in the comfort of his own home again. It made Harry look even younger, if that was possible. Any tension that had set in Harry’s shoulders from the debacle with Nick and the stress of exams had lifted completely. 

Louis ducked his head and kissed Harry’s shoulder that was pressed against his own chest as Harry retold his mum some story about his exams and how Liam had them on a very strict study schedule that even Zayn had apparently protested to. 

After a while, Anne and Robin got up to make lunch for everyone and Harry went to help them. Gemma quickly sat down into the spot Harry had vacated next to Louis and she slung an arm around his shoulders. 

“How are you?” she asked softly. “Harry told me what happened with the, you know, kidnapping.”

“I’m okay,” Louis replied honestly. “I’ve been going to therapy like a good little boy and Harry has been pecking at me like a mother hen since I woke up from my coma.”

Gemma gave him a hard look. “Alright,” she said. “How was it seeing Nick again?”

“Horrible,” Louis said, shuddering. “He’s so creepy, Gem. Be thankful that you’re not a mutant and that you never had to be taught by him. He was _always_ hitting on Harry, even after Harry and I got together.”

Gemma crinkled her nose. “Gross,” she said. 

Louis glanced over her shoulder towards the kitchen where he could hear Harry talking to Anne and Robin about something. “Harry never realised it, though,” he continued. “And if he did, he was too nice to say anything about it. He’s too sweet, that one.”

“My brother, sweet?” Gemma teased, shaking her head. “Never.”

Louis grinned. “He’s the sweetest,” he replied, poking her in the arm. “I’m so glad I found him.”

“God, you’re mushy,” she said. “And over my _brother_ , too. I still say you and I would’ve made a better couple.”

“Undoubtedly,” Louis returned with a wink. “Alas, my heart belongs to him.” He put his hand on his chest and dramatically swooned and Gemma just pushed him off the couch. 

“There,” she said. “That’s better.”

“You wound me, Miss Styles, wound me, I say.”

“You’ll live,” Gemma said. 

Louis grunted and got up off the floor to sit back on the loveseat, purposefully elbowing Gemma in the thigh as he did. She yelped and poked him in the side, causing him to double over with laughter. Gemma grinned, her eyes glinting as she tackled him, pushing him back against the arm of the chair, her fingers moving mercilessly over his ribs. Louis let out a very undignified and unmanly squeal and Anne popped her head around the door to see what was going on. She just smiled at them and returned to the kitchen, leaving Louis to fend for himself under Gemma’s evil, evil hands. 

“Stop,” Louis eventually got out between bouts of laughter. Gemma stopped and sat back, looking proud. “You’re so mean.”

“I know,” Gemma replied with a grin. She poked him in the thigh and Louis lazily swatted at her hand but missed completely. 

He took a few deep breaths and by the time they were called in for lunch, Louis had got his breathing under control but still had flushed cheeks. He sat down next to Harry who grinned at him.

“She beat you, didn’t she?” Harry asked as he picked up a section of his sandwich.

Louis looked over at Gemma who had a smug smile on her face. “Yes, she did,” he replied. “How’d you survive growing up with that?”

“I taught him everything he knows,” Gemma replied before she took a large bite of her own sandwich. 

“She’s ruthless,” Harry added. “But I survived by going off to Xavier’s School.”

“Spared, you mean,” Gemma corrected with a pointed look.

“Louis,” Anne started, cutting their conversation short. “I’ve got a suit upstairs for you to try on later. Harry gave me your measurements so I hope the suit fits okay. We can go into town tomorrow if it isn’t.”

“Suit?” Louis asked with a frown.

“For the wedding,” Anne replied easily. “Can’t have my boys mismatched, can I?”

Louis’ stomach fluttered pleasantly at being called one of her boys and he shook his head. “N-no, I guess not,” he said. Harry’s hand moved to rest on his thigh underneath the table and he squeezed gently. Louis automatically covered Harry’s hand with his own, lacing their fingers together. 

After that, the conversation turned to more wedding related details. Harry caught Louis’ gaze and smiled at him, love evident in his eyes. Louis felt so lucky to have this, to have Harry. He didn’t want to let it go.

Both Zayn and Liam were right with their comments about how lovely and welcoming Anne was. He felt right at home with them and it was a feeling Louis didn’t think he’d find outside of the boys and Harry. It was nice to feel immediately safe and loved even though he had just met Harry’s family properly.

That night, Louis lay in his bed in the spare room and looked up at the ceiling. It was a pretty plain looking room compared to Harry’s room and the rest of the house but Louis had his own wardrobe space to put his clothes, which he needed if he was going to be spending the summer with Harry’s family. 

The bed felt too empty though. It had been two hours since he had climbed into bed, his body and mind exhausted and desperately seeking sleep but he couldn’t sleep without Harry curled around him. He didn’t want to leave his room and see if Harry was awake and risk waking anyone else up in the process. He figured that sleep would claim him eventually. He just hoped it was soon.

A tapping noise on his door made Louis sit up. He frowned and waited. The noise happened again. 

“Come in,” he called out. The door knob twisted and Harry’s curly head of hair appeared as he poked his head around the door. He beamed when he saw Louis sitting up in bed. Harry quietly closed the door and crossed the room to Louis. He immediately climbed under the covers and settled down in the bed.

“Couldn’t sleep,” Harry mumbled by way of explaining. “My bed is too big without you in it.”

Louis smiled and turned onto his side so he was facing Harry. “Mine too,” he admitted. “I didn’t want to go to your room and wake you, though. Or your mum, for that matter. I don’t want her to yell at me.”

“She wouldn’t yell at you,” Harry replied as he slipped one leg between Louis’ own. “C’mere, I want to cuddle.”

Louis huffed out a laugh and shifted closer so he could wrap his arms around Harry properly, getting as close as he physically could. He ran his hand over Harry’s bare shoulder and let it settle on his back where he stroked slow, soothing circles into the skin. Harry let out a content sigh and lifted his head so he could kiss Louis. Louis sighed into the kiss and pushed Harry back into the bed a little, leaning on one elbow over Harry. Harry’s hand found its way into his hair and Louis suppressed the flinch that wanted to take over him at the touch so he could kiss Harry properly. 

Harry’s free hand slid down Louis’ back and cupped his arse, his hand automatically squeezing it. Louis pulled back and Harry just looked up at him innocently.

“You’re insufferable,” Louis said as he ducked his head back down to kiss Harry once more. He shifted back onto his side and they rearranged themselves so they were comfortable for sleeping and Harry grinned as he snuggled into Louis’ chest. “But I guess I love you.”

“Love you too, Lou,” Harry said into Louis’ naked skin. He dropped a kiss where his mouth rested and Louis finally let himself close his eyes. He fell asleep almost instantly, Harry breathing against his neck and their legs entwined under the blankets.

~*~

The day of the wedding saw everyone in a flurry. Anne and Gemma were holed up in Anne’s room with a family friend of theirs, Lou, who was doing Anne and Gemma’s hair. Robin was already in his tuxedo and was placating some of their guests that had arrived. Louis and Harry had slept in, wrapped in each other’s arms with Louis’ force field protectively cocooning them while they slept. It had taken Gemma yelling quite loudly at them to wake up before they did and even then, Harry had just flopped back down on the bed and said he wanted to get some more sleep.

The boys had arrived the night before and they were all camped out in the guest room Louis had stayed in on the first night. After Anne had found Harry’s bed empty the morning after they had got back from school and found him curled in Louis’ arms, fast asleep, she had agreed to let them share Harry’s room as long as they kept their noise down. Louis had flushed to the tips of his ears but had assured Anne that they would. So Louis had moved his stuff into Harry’s room. 

He silently thought it looked good to see his belongings intermingled with Harry’s own. Even though they shared a room at the school and Louis ended up with a fair amount of Harry’s clothes in his wardrobe, they hadn’t actually completely _shared_ anything like this. It made Louis want to ask Harry to move in with him sooner than he had planned to. He didn’t want to do it just yet, he wanted Harry to spend some time with his family first and Louis wanted to pass his exams as well before he contemplated asking Harry about moving in with him but just looking around Harry’s room and seeing all of his stuff mixed with Harry’s made him feel at home. It was silly, he thought, that simple objects could make him feel so emotional but he knew that the sentiment behind it all was what gave him feelings. 

Louis finished up his shower and stepped out, clutching his towel tightly around his waist. The house was filled with people that Louis didn’t know and he didn’t want to accidentally flash any of them. Not that his powers wouldn’t kick in beforehand to turn himself invisible and save that embarrassment but Louis couldn’t be too careful, especially when Niall was in the guest room still. 

The suit Anne had chosen for him was incredible. It fit perfectly, even if Louis did think the legs could have used rolling up just once more (she refused to let him and Louis hadn’t wanted to argue with her on it). He had tried the suit on and the look on both Anne and Harry’s faces had been ones that Louis would never forget. Anne, whom he had just met two days beforehand at that point, looked so utterly _proud_ of him. It made Louis’ stomach flutter. She was so wonderful to him and Louis really didn’t know what he had done to deserve it. She had welled up and hugged him tightly before leaving him alone with Harry. 

Harry’s reaction had been vastly different. He had pinned Louis against the closed bedroom door and snogged him senseless. Louis had to shrug out of the suit jacket to make sure that Harry wasn’t going to wrinkle it as he grabbed at Louis’ waist. Louis wasn’t exactly sure what it was about the suit that had made Harry react and he didn’t want to ask in case it broke whatever spell they were under. He had graciously accepted the kisses and the hand in his hair, mussing it, in favour of Harry’s lips against his own. 

“You look good,” was all Harry said in response to Louis’ questioning look. 

The suit had been put away after that and on the day of the wedding, Louis had set it on the bed before his shower so he could change into it. He carefully pulled it on, piece by piece, making sure not to wrinkle it lest he get scolded by Gemma for it. 

The bedroom door opened just as Louis was buttoning up the white shirt and he looked up to see Zayn step into the room. He was already completely dressed and his hair was in a gravity defying quiff that made Louis smile. 

“Hey,” he said. “Alright?”

Louis smiled at him. “Yeah, you?”

Zayn nodded and closed the door behind him. “Do you need a hand with your tie?” he asked and Louis looked at the skinny, pale blue tie that was laid out on top of his suit jacket. 

“Please,” he said as he fastened the last button near the collar of his shirt. Zayn slipped the tie around his own neck and tied it with deft fingers. He loosened it and pulled it over his own head and closed the gap between himself and Louis.

Zayn lifted the tie over his head and fastened it up. He turned them both to face the mirror and he straightened it until it was perfectly in the centre. Louis shrugged his jacket on next and looked at his reflection, smiling at Zayn over his shoulder.

“I think Anne’s stylist, Lou, is going to do my hair for me,” Louis said. “I can’t go out there with this mop. I should’ve had it cut.”

“Shut up, you look good,” Zayn replied, poking Louis in the arm. He stepped out from behind Louis and smoothed down the lapels of his jacket. “Do you have a pocket square?”

Louis shook his head. “No,” he started. “I think I have a matching flower thingy like Harry does. They’re downstairs with Robin. I just need to put my cufflinks on.”

Zayn picked up the box off the dresser top that held the simple silver cufflinks in them. They were each in the shape of an S and Harry had told Louis he had been given them by his grandfather for his sixteenth birthday. 

“I imagine this is what it’ll be like in a few years when you and Harry get married but you’ll have an epic case of bridezilla,” Zayn said as Louis fastened the cufflinks on. 

Louis glanced up at him. “You’re sorely mistaken if you don’t think that Harry will be worse than me,” he replied. “I’m pretty sure I caught him talking to Gemma about our wedding the other night. We haven’t even had _sex_ yet and he’s already planning out what song we’ll have our first dance to.”

“You haven’t had sex yet?” Zayn asked incredulously. “Wait, we’ll get back to the wedding planning thing later. _Why_ haven’t you had sex yet?”

“Have you _seen_ how busy this house is? I can’t have sex knowing that someone could walk in at any moment,” Louis replied. “Besides, I want our first time to be special, to mean something.”

“It doesn’t have to be anywhere specific for it to have a special meaning, you know,” Zayn said as he perched on the edge of the bed. He looked up at Louis pointedly. “Liam and I had our first time at school. That wasn’t a special place. It was special because _we_ were both there. That’s all.”

Louis sighed and pushed his suit jacket to the side so that he could sit down next to Zayn. “I just don’t want him to regret it, you know?” he started. “I don’t want it to be rushed because Anne and Robin are out doing the grocery shopping and Gemma is at a friend’s house or something. I want to be able to take my time with him.”

“I get that,” Zayn said with a nod. “But it’s Harry. He won’t mind _where_ you guys have sex. I’m pretty sure he’s willing to have it in the back of my Range Rover by this point.”

Louis coughed pointedly. “I think you mean _my_ Range Rover.” He winked at Zayn and bumped their shoulders together. “It’s not just him. It’s probably stupidly cheesy of me but this will be my first time, like, _ever_. I want it to be special, too.”

“Sorry, I couldn’t hear you over all of the cheese in that sentence,” Zayn teased. He slung his arm around Louis’ shoulder and pulled him close. “You’re incredibly romantic, Tommo. Harry is a lucky boy.”

Louis smiled and laid his head on Zayn’s shoulder. “I’m the lucky one,” he said softly. “I don’t know what I’d do without him.”

“I call dibs on best man, you know,” Zayn commented. “Alright?”

“Alright,” Louis agreed. He turned his head and buried his nose in the crook of Zayn’s neck, just to breathe for a few moments. “I’d better see where Harry is.”

Zayn nodded and they both stood. “You look really handsome, Lou,” he said. He leaned over and kissed Louis’ cheek softly before leaving the room. Louis smiled to himself and slipped his suit jacket on, making sure it sat perfectly before he went to find Harry.

It was a rush to get everyone out of the house on time and to the wedding ceremony location. Anne and Robin were having an outdoors wedding ceremony and reception at the park near their house. The grass was a lush green from the summer and when Louis stepped out of the car with Harry, he felt speechless at how gorgeous everything looked. He knew right then that he wanted the same kind of wedding for himself and Harry whenever they got married. 

The sun shone in the cloudless sky and Louis silently thanked Zayn for making sure that the day had perfect weather for Anne’s sake. He could hear children’s laughter and he figured some of Harry’s cousins had arrived before them.

Harry rounded the car and stopped in front of Louis. “I don’t know if I’ve told you how good you look today.”

“Just once or twice,” Louis said fondly. He reached for both of Harry’s hands and squeezed them gently. “You look so handsome, Harry. You really do.”

Harry beamed at him and Louis’ stomach swooped pleasantly at it. He wasn’t wrong in telling Zayn that he was the luckiest. 

“Let’s go, you’ve got best man duties to do,” Louis said, squeezing Harry’s hands in his own. They crossed the road and to the waiting ceremony area. Louis took a seat in the first row of chairs and waited for the others to arrive. 

The entire ceremony was gorgeous, Louis thought, as he watched Anne and Robin exchange vows then rings. Anne looked positively gorgeous in her dress and both she and Robin were glowing with happiness. Gemma looked radiant standing next to her mum, her eyes shining with unshed tears. Louis knew that she was only holding it together so she didn’t ruin her make up. He pulled a face at her when she looked his way and she winked at him in return. 

Harry left Louis breathless. He looked amazing in his suit and Louis could almost see the happiness bubbling from inside of Harry. Louis found his mind wandering on more than one occasion, picturing his and Harry’s own wedding. He had to quickly pull himself away from those thoughts so he could watch Anne and Robin get married. It wouldn’t do for him to get lost in his own thoughts and miss the entire ceremony.

Anne and Robin kissed and everyone cheered loudly. Applause rang through the crowd of family and friends and Louis could hear Niall cheering extra loudly from just behind him. It was worth it to see the beaming smiles on Anne and Robin’s faces, Louis decided. Everyone stood and Louis quickly arranged himself so he was facing towards the aisle.

Instead of confetti or rice or even bubbles that would potentially stain Anne’s dress, Louis had decided that he would offer up a little trick of his own. He had been practicing in secret as much as he could so he could get it right for the wedding and had only asked Anne if he could do that for her two days before the wedding when she realised that throwing rice outside would potentially hurt the pigeons in the area. She had eagerly agreed and thanked him for his completely harm free way of giving them something like that. Louis had flushed and told her it wasn’t a big deal but Anne had hugged him tightly like it was. Louis couldn’t disappoint her and he had kept practicing until he couldn’t practice any more. He just wanted it to be perfect for her. 

He raised a hand and formed hundreds of little bubble like force fields. He held his palm out flat and blew on it like he was blowing bubbles away from it and they cascaded all around Anne and Robin as they walked down the aisle together, both smiling brightly. Louis grinned as he watched the force field bubbles pop as Anne and Robin walked through them, leaving no marks behind. 

A moment later, Harry wrapped his arm around Louis’ middle and pulled him into his side. He watched silently as everyone kept clapping and cheering until Anne and Robin disappeared from sight. 

“That looked amazing, Lou,” Gemma said a moment later. Louis looked up at her and grinned. 

“Yeah,” he agreed, “it did.”

They all moved away from the ceremony area and over to the marquee tents that had been set up off to the side where the reception was going to be held. Anne and Robin had left to take a few minutes to themselves and Harry led Louis over to the tables so they could find where to be sitting. 

Niall all but jumped on his back a short while later when he found them again through the crowd of people. “Mate, that looked sick,” he said, kissing Louis’ cheek loudly. “When did you learn to do that?”

Louis shrugged. “I don’t know,” he replied. “I just did it and it worked.”

They found their table, close to Harry’s parents’ table and they sat down. The food was brilliant and even Louis could feel a constant buzz of happiness in his veins throughout the entire afternoon. Both Harry and Gemma made speeches along with other family members toasting the newlyweds. 

After the newlyweds first dance together on the makeshift dance floor, Ashley grabbed Niall’s hand and led him to the dance floor. Louis laughed as he watched Niall trying to dance – he had no rhythm at all. Liam and Zayn were the next ones to join the others on the dance floor and Louis glanced at Harry who was staring at him with a glassy-eyed look and he nodded. Harry beamed and took Louis’ hand in his own. 

He immediately wrapped his arms around Harry and they slow danced together, despite the upbeat music. “This is going to be us one day,” Louis said, looking up at Harry.

“I know,” Harry replied with a grin. 

Louis ducked his head and swayed with Harry on the spot until Gemma cut in. He twirled her around the dance floor, listening to her laugh happily. 

“If you get married before me, I’ll never forgive you,” Gemma said as Louis pulled her up from a dip. “Just so you know.”

“You’d better find someone pretty quick then,” Liam interjected as he and Zayn danced passed them. He threw them a wink and Louis had the grace to flush.

“You didn’t propose already, did you?” Gemma asked in amazement. 

“No!” Louis exclaimed. “Not at all. We’re not getting married. Not yet. It’s just the crazy wedding fever in the air.”

“Good,” Gemma said. “Because I will poke you in the eye if you and Harry get married before I do.”

Louis twirled her again. “I can’t make any promises,” he teased with a grin. She rolled her eyes at him and they finished their dance. 

Anne quickly replaced Gemma before Harry could and she slipped her hand easily into Louis’ own, placing her other on his shoulder.

“You look absolutely stunning, Anne,” he said and she smiled at him. “Seriously, if you hadn’t just got hitched, I would’ve swept you off your feet myself.”

“I think my son would protest to that,” Anne replied easily as they moved around the dance floor together. 

“Semantics,” Louis said with a shrug of his shoulders. 

“Thank you, Louis,” Anne said and Louis looked at her, confused. 

“What for?” 

“For making Harry so happy,” she replied. “He was a happy kid, well, as happy as any teenage boy could be, really, but you make him happy in any way that a mother could hope for their child.” She squeezed his shoulder gently. “And I know your family isn’t here but I am certain that your mother would be feeling exactly the same.”

Tears pricked the backs of Louis’ eyes as he nodded. “Thank you,” he said wetly. “Harry’s really lucky to have you.”

“You have me too, silly,” Anne said immediately. “You’re family now, whether you like it or not.” She kissed his cheek and Louis pulled her in for a tight hug, unable to thank her enough in words. She kissed the top of his head after a few long moments and pulled away. “I think my son wants to cut in now. He’s been looking our way ever since Gemma stopped dancing with you.”

Louis laughed and nodded. “Happy wedding day, Mrs Twist.” She winked at him and moved away, leaving him standing alone. Harry smiled from across the dance floor and Louis closed the distance between them. He pulled Harry into his arms and kissed him soundly on the lips. “I love you,” he said.

Harry kissed him again. “I love you,” he whispered against Louis’ lips.

“I wasn’t going to ask you this yet,” Louis started, unable to stop himself. “Not until I’d passed my exams but I can’t wait.”

“Yeah?” Harry prompted after a long moment of silence.

“Move in with me?” Louis asked, looking up at Harry. “I want to get a flat near the school so you can do your A Levels and I was hoping-” Harry cut him off with a kiss. Louis sighed contently and wrapped his arms around Harry’s neck. 

“Yes,” Harry said after a few kisses. “Yes, I’d love to move in with you.”

Louis beamed at him and kissed Harry again. “Maybe we can move in a few weeks before school starts,” he said as he pulled back once more. “So we can have some much needed alone time.”

“Sex?” Harry asked eagerly.

Louis laughed. “Yeah, sex.”

Harry laughed and picked Louis up, twirling them in a circle together. “God, I can’t _wait_. Can we move in sooner? I mean, we have a _lot_ of alone time catching up to do.” He waggled his eyebrows at Louis who just snorted.

“Calm down,” Louis said, resting his hand on Harry’s chest. He ran a finger down the lapel of Harry’s suit jacket. “I need to _find_ a place close enough to the school first. Then we can move in, alright?”

Harry let out a put upon sigh but dipped his head to kiss Louis again. He held Louis close and warmth spread through Louis everywhere they touched. Harry’s mouth opened underneath his own and he nipped at Louis’ tongue once before massaging his own against it in a soothing motion. Louis sighed into the kiss and gripped the lapels of Harry’s suit jacket a little tighter. Harry’s hand slipped down his back, precariously close to his bottom and he just managed to squeeze it once before they were interrupted.

“Enough of that,” Liam teased as he, Niall and Zayn approached, forming a small circle with them. He held out two champagne glasses and he and Harry each took one. Liam took the other that Zayn held for him and then raised his glass. “I know it’s utterly cheesy but today is the perfect time for it,” he started. “I wanted to thank you four for being the most amazing and stupid best friends a guy could ever have. I know I’ve learned a lot from you four this year alone and I’m sure you all feel the same.”

“We do,” Zayn said as he wrapped his arm low around Liam’s waist. 

“Fuck, you’re all saps,” Niall added. Louis didn’t comment on the wetness he could see in Niall’s own eyes. “You lads are really something. I’m glad we’re going to be the next generation of superheroes together. I couldn’t ask for four better friends to have at my side.”

“God help anyone who ever needs _us_ to save them,” Louis snorted. 

“I think we’ll do alright,” Harry said and Louis leaned into him a little more. “We know we can work as a team together – that’s half the battle, right?”

Liam nodded. “Yeah,” he said. “It is.”

“Well,” Zayn said. “Li, wrap up this toast then.”

Liam smiled brightly. “I love you all,” he said. “Here’s to us. Oh! And Harry’s parents’ wedding, of course.” He quickly looked over his shoulder but no one was paying them any mind. Gemma and Ashley were talking a few tables away and Anne and Robin were wrapped in each other dancing in the middle of the dance floor, looking every bit the happy newlyweds that they were.

“Cheers!” they said in unison. Louis lifted the glass to his lips and took a long sip before he found himself being reeled in for a tight group hug with his four best friends. He held onto them tightly, keeping a firm grip on his glass so it didn’t slip as he hugged the others as best as he could in their squashed group hug. 

They stepped back just enough so they could finish off their drinks and Louis turned to Harry who was smiling brightly. He set his glass down on the nearest table and slipped both of his arms around Harry’s middle. He could tell from the look on Harry’s face that he wasn’t just feeling his own emotions but he was taking in the emotions from everyone around him as well.

“What do you feel?” Louis asked. 

Harry’s gaze roamed across the crowd before settling on Louis, a grin playing on his lips. “Happy,” he replied easily.

Louis tilted his head up for a kiss and Harry pressed his lips to Louis’ own briefly. “Yeah,” he agreed with a smile. “Me too.”

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update as of 17/10/15: 
> 
>  
> 
> While I still want to write the interlude and sequel to Supernova, it doesn't seem likely that it will happen.  
>  Hopefully Supernova itself will suffice as the entire story.
> 
> Sorry to anyone who hates me for this.
> 
>  
> 
> Happy Sunday!!
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or my [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book. ♥
> 
> I just wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone who has read or commented or left me a tweet or ask regarding this story - you have no idea just how utterly grateful I am for each and every one of you. I didn't think anyone would like this let alone everyone who has.  
> Now, I know that this chapter had no sex between Louis and Harry whatsoever and I know that some people might be put out by that but rest assured, I _am_ in the process of writing an interlude which takes place straight after this story. I just felt like sex didn't fit in with this story at all, despite the case of blue balls the boys probably have.  
>  And since they'll be having sex for the first time together in the interlude, there will be a healthy amount of versatility between them as they discover what they each like and don't like, just so you know. Now, all I have to do is get it written. So, if anyone has found my muse or the key to unlock my writer's block, I'd fully appreciate the help. ;)  
> There is also a proper sequel being planned as well, but it's just in planning at the moment. I haven't found a proper solid plot and villain that I like yet, so it's all up in the air. =/
> 
> Please let me know what you thought, if you want to.
> 
> Thank you once again, you're all gems! ♥

**Author's Note:**

> As I said in the start notes, this fic will be posted every Sunday morning from here on out and I hope you enjoyed chapter one.
> 
> Feel free to hit me up on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com) or [twitter](https://twitter.com/Star_55) if you prefer if you want to chat at all, or ask questions or anything, really. I'm pretty much an open book.


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